Steve Knopper reviewed the album in the Chicago Tribune, calling it "a formless blob of synth sounds" and asserting that new singer Ray Wilson has "no confidence or personality, let alone the vision to stave off his bandmates' meandering ideas."

Phil Collins said in interview that he liked some songs from Calling All Stations and even proposed to sing some of them during their 2007 "Turn it on again" Tour. Manager Tony Smith liked the idea but Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks refused.

"We enjoyed working on this album with Ray, but the essence of Genesis isn't really there, and the album didn't find its audience. We prefer to keep it as a side project." said Tony Banks.

In a 2019 interview, Tony Banks thought the album contained "some very good songs," but "has a kind of uniformity about it that I regret. It contains one or two rather weak tracks, too. We also left off two of the strongest tracks, which was a mistake." Rutherford said he did not regret making Calling All Stations, but due to its sales being lower than that of previous Genesis albums, he had "sensed that the mood had changed in terms of radio play." As he thought Genesis was already "becoming a catalogue act," this influenced the band's decision to stop recording new material.

Tour and aftermath

Genesis supported the album with a 47-date European tour from 29 January to 31 May 1998, featuring shows in large arenas throughout Europe. The core trio were joined by Zidkyahu on drums, percussion, and backing vocals and Irish musician Anthony Drennan on guitar and bass. Former touring members Daryl Stuermer and Chester Thompson were initially approached, but Stuermer was already working with Collins, and Thompson refused to join after his request for full-fledged band membership was denied. Rehearsals took place at Bray Film Studios in Windsor and the Working Men's Club in Chiddingfold, close to the band's recording studio. The tour concluded with spots at the Rock am Ring and Rock im Park Festival in Germany. A majority of the older songs were transposed in a lower key to accommodate Wilson's lower vocal range. Midway through the set included an acoustic medley of songs from their 1970s output. The tour was captured live on several radio broadcasts; two songs from the NEC Arena ("Not About Us" and a ten-minute version of "The Dividing Line") were officially released in 2023 on BBC Broadcasts. Also, the "Not About Us" single included three acoustic performances from an early radio show at RTL Studios in Paris, 1997.

A 27-date North American tour in large arenas was booked to start in November 1997, A revised 22-date tour in smaller venues was arranged, but that too was cancelled. At the European tour's conclusion, Genesis went on hiatus until Collins returned for their 2007 Turn It On Again Tour.

Track listing

All songs written by Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford, except where noted.

  • Note: The CD liner notes state that track 7, "The Dividing Line", is 8:59.

B-sides

"Papa He Said" and "Banjo Man" are from the single "Congo". Instrumental tracks "Phret" and "7/8" are from the single "Shipwrecked". "Anything Now", "Sign Your Life Away" and "Run Out of Time" are from the single "Not About Us". All tracks are Banks/Rutherford compositions, except "Banjo Man" which is by Banks/Rutherford/Wilson. "Nowhere Else to Turn" is an unreleased track from the sessions that only appeared on a promotional CD.

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.

Genesis

  • Tony Banks – keyboards, acoustic guitar, backing vocals
  • Mike Rutherford – guitars, bass, backing vocals
  • Ray Wilson – lead vocals

Additional musicians

  • Nick D'Virgilio – drums on "Alien Afternoon" (first half), "If That's What You Need", "Uncertain Weather", and "Small Talk", percussion
  • Nir Zidkyahu – drums on "Alien Afternoon" (second half) and all other songs, percussion

Production

  • Tony Banks – producer
  • Mike Rutherford – producer
  • Nick Davis – producer, engineer
  • Ian Huffam – assistant engineer
  • Recorded at The Farm, Surrey, England
  • Geoff Callingham – technical assistance
  • Mike Bowen – technical assistance
  • Dale Newman – general assistance
  • Wherefore ART? – sleeve design
  • Kevin Westernberg – photography
  • Peter Robathan – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

|-

!scope="col" |Chart (1997–1998)

!scope="col" |Peak<br/>position

|-

|-

|-

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Czech Albums (IFPI)

|6

|-

|-

!scope="row"|European Albums (IFPI)

|2

|-

!scope="row"|Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)

|19

|-

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Greek Albums (IFPI)

|17

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Italian Albums (FIMI)

|7

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Portuguese Albums (AFP)

|8

|-

|-

|-

|-

|}

Year-end charts

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

!scope="col"|Chart (1997)

!scope="col"|Position

|-

!scope="row"|Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)

|73

|-

!scope="row"|European Albums (IFPI)

|61

|-

!scope="row"|German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)

|33

|-

!scope="row"|Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)

|77

|-

!scope="row"|Spanish Albums (AFYVE)

|57

|}

Certifications

Release history

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"

|-

! scope="col" | Region

! scope="col" | Date

|-

! scope="row"| United Kingdom

| 1 September 1997

|-

! scope="row"| United States

| 2 September 1997

|}

References