• Studio versions of extended-length songs like this rarely get a chance to blend into a cohesive, fluid, final product. Tying all the diverse elements, sections and time signatures together is quite the Herculean Task. Being a musician myself, I’m reasonably certain that this song was never practiced in the studio from beginning to end. So the transitions from one section to the next are noticeably rough because they never had a chance to get polished.
• Chester Thompson (CT) / Bill Bruford (BB): I can’t find the video version of SR that appears on SO. There’s a full-length movie that has the performances that make up SO. I saw it back in the 80s at a “Midnight Movie” event, but I don’t recall who played drums on it (I believe BB did a full tour with them before CT joined the band, so it’s likely to be BB). Phil Collin’s (PC) studio drumming during the Peter Gabriel (PG) years tends to be a bit rigid in spots. On the live versions, the studio versions of the songs really come to life and all the rough edges are polished to perfection. I’m inclined to give CT the most credit for this, because his drumming is so smooth and precise, but I’m sure everyone is involved in this process. Even if some of the versions are “enhanced” (as someone strongly suggested), the end result is nothing short of magical. That’s what happens when you perform songs live from beginning to end enough times. Even live performances with PG while he was still in the band (see the link below) are much more inspired and cohesive. They still lack the near-perfection of SO and Three Sides Live (TSL), but are much more of a finished product than they are on the albums. PG’s theatrics aside (highly entertaining, tho!), his vocals flow much better with the material than the studio versions.

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