You (Tony Banks, 1979)

Tony Banks's solo career somehow disappointed the musician himself, who surely deserved more. That said, Banks released some great songs as a solo artist and this "You", taken from his debut album "A Curious Feeling", is one of his best compositions ever, IMHO. The melody is simply beautiful, so sweet and sad, and the arrangement - liquid and suspended between pop tempations and prog roots - magnifies it.

"A Curious Feeling" was remixed and re-released in 2008.

The keyboard solo is obviously a highlight of "You" (and there's a 7/8 passage too!), but the entire track has a magic and impalpable mood I admire each time I listen to it. Another strong point here is the voice of the late Kim Beacon of String Driven Thing fame, so  warm and with the right folkish mood in it. This song is just another good reason to rediscover and rightly value a musician to which we owe so much.

An Island in The Darkness (Strictly Inc., 1995)

Strictly Inc. is a one album project by Genesis founder member Tony Banks, also featuring among others vocalist Jack Hues and long-standing Genesis live member Daryl Stuermer. It's one of the few long epics written by Banks for his solo albums (around 17 minutes) and, IMHO, likely his best one. There's an original mix of piano driven sections and mostly pop sung parts. Even if I don't especially like the drum machine, "An Island in The Darkness" includes a great melody, some beautiful instrumental sections and a wide range of compositional gimmicks.

 

Even if the album is credited to Strictly Inc., actually this 

can be considered as Tony Banks' seventh studio album.

As usual, Tony excels in painting obscure and melancholy atmospheres, misty and crepuscular landscapes. I'm deeply touched by his minor key chords and the longest instrumental passage of this song is simply outstanding. I'm pleased to mention some other strong points of the track: Daryl Stuermer's guitar solo, the piano intro and the sensitive Jack Hues' vocal performance, to name just a few of them. Definitely a highlight in Banks' career.