The Hermit (Steve Hackett, 1975)

This highly atmospheric song, based on acoustic instruments and on a misty, fairy inspiration, perfectly illustrates Steve Hackett's magical side. Like in an ancient and forgotten English garden, the listener follows a moisty path through the wild, guided by a far away lantern. There he'll find the hermit and, of course, Steve himself playing some folkish tune with his elven friends. The melancholic mood of the instrumental final section is so deeply heartbreaking and John Hackett's flute has such a mysterious call that I'm always compelled to start the song once again and enjoy its charms one more time.

The Hermit as seen on the album, drawn by Kim Poor.

IMHO, "The Hermit" is a perfect example of progressive ballad and somehow it announces the forthcoming "intermediate" Genesis era. And it also proves how much Steve influenced the band's musical choices in a trying passage of their career. When listening to this song, I finally see how precociously mature Steve's talent got...

Shadow of The Hierophant (Steve Hackett, 1975)

One of the best Genesis members' solo tracks, IMHO. Coming from Steve's first album, "Voyage of The Acolyte", this rather long piece of music also features Mike Rutherford, Phil Collins and stunning Sally Oldfield's vocals. Misty and sad, based on the unusual union of an acoustic verse and a fully symphonic chorus, "Shadow of The Hierophant" is full of surprises. The volume changes are the first feature the listener comes across, then he realizes how tricky and ingenious the architecture of this song is.

Hackett's debut album is full of sense of wonder.

Eleven minutes of spectacular, more or less fantasy sketches, suggesting valleys and heroes, pains and triumphs. More Genesis than Genesis themselves, this track goes through its different phases buiding up a winding crescendo. Even being a guitarist's brainchild, "Shadow of The Hierophant" looks like a full band's work - and somehow it actually is. That's why it shines on as one of the first and best steps of Steve Hackett's unpredictable and overwhelming solo career.

There Are Many Sides to The Night (Steve Hackett, 1993)

"Guitar Noir" is one of favourite Steve Hackett's album, because of its coherence and also for this song, a sad and intriguing one, starting with the typical Hackett's dreaming electric guitar on a keyboard background and continuing with a softly spoken passage. Here the acoustic guitar comes in and the track warms up, introducing the beautiful sung chorus, performed twice.

A beautiful picture of Steve in concert.

The finale comes back to the misty and somewhat poastoral atmosphere Steve likes so much (and so do I). The lyrics depict a night in London and the singer coming across a tempting woman and the singer refusing her for his own love's sake. I really see and feel the scene and the night's sliding doors, the smells and the darkness, the cold air and the lamps, the woman's presence and the Thames flowing. Seven minutes of magic, a living slice of a night, of its many sides.

Spectral Mornings (Steve Hackett, 1979)

A dreaming guitar, that's exactly what you'll find here. This instrumental title track from Steve's third album is not of this world, 'cause it come from another strange planet, from another mysterious dawn. On a keyboards carpet provided by Nick Magnus and reminiscent of Pink Floyd-esque atmospheres comes this persistent guitar, both dreamy and painful, like an ancient ode to a misty rising sun.

Kim Poor's album cover art perfectly depicts the misty mood of this track.

You'll actually see an English landscape slowly brightening, a beautiful and melancholic daylight fighting the fog and piercing your very soul. Steve replays the same moving melody and each time its performance grows in deepness and power. An extraordinary experience, don't miss it.