This concept album is the band's interpretation of the book of Genesis. Yes, the bible book. It was actually written by Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Anthony Phillips, and Mike Rutherford when they were still in highschool. Many were developed from earlier songs and rewritten to fit the bible theme. It's clear that they were influenced by The Moody Blues concept album "Days of Future Past", as the sound is often very similar. There is also quite a bit of BeeGees influence heard on this album, as evidenced by the their first single in 1968, The Silent Sun. Perhaps if this album came out a few years earlier, it would have been a smash hit. As it stands, it does sound a bit dated, and probably sounded so even then. By 1969, this sort of brit pop was going out of style. Even so, there are some very original things on this album. First and foremost is the primary use of the piano and the acoustic guitar over electric instruments. It is heavily reliant on chord structures rather than riffs, as Genesis music tends to be from their first album to their last. Gabriel's voice is also very distinctive, although he sings much more softly and more reserved on this album than we're used to hearing. But it's clear, even at this early point, that there is something very special to that voice of his.