Peter Gabriel's departure from Genesis after "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" could have thrown the future of the band into doubt. But when Phil Collins somewhat hesitantly took the vocal reins on the first album of their new era, "A Trick Of The Tail", it soon became clear that they would get on well together. According to reports, the new album sold twice as many copies as its predecessor. Released on February 2, 1976, it was a record where Messrs. Collins, Banks, Hackett and Rutherford followed their best instincts. "It's as strong as ever," Banks told Melody Maker when A Trick Of The Tail was released, whereupon he made a bold declaration. "If it's not, we won't play anymore. If it's not that good, there's no point in playing. Peter left and life goes on. We were all kind of sad. We spent some time trying to get him to change his mind, but when he didn't change his mind, we just kept going. A Trick Of The Tail debuted at number 5 in the UK charts on March 20th. The band spent the first six weeks in the top ten and remained in the top 75 for 31 consecutive weeks until September. More than two and a half years after its release, the album still occasionally appeared on the market chart. It went both silver and gold in June, and also struck gold in America, where it reached number 31. When the album peaked at number 3 in the UK, the band's highest album since Selling England By The Pound, and their best album to date in the US album charts, it was clear that the emergence of the new Genesis held much promise for the future.