‘I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)‘: Genesis In 1974 Hit Single Shock

In 1974, Genesis were still very much of that adult album tendency that didn’t really bother about singles. Along with Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, and many others, they were part of the progressive generation that focused almost all of their attention on long, episodic album tracks.

If they happened to come up with a song that was worthy of release on a 45, it was often something of an afterthought. Even if they did, the singles chart compilers were rarely troubled by their presence. So it was more than a surprise when, on the chart of April 6, 1974, Genesis made their first-ever showing on the UK singles bestsellers, and with a track from an album that had been released six months earlier.

Their fifth studio LP Selling England By The Pound came out the previous October. It reached No.3 and advanced the band’s reputation as one of the leading album rock attractions of the day. But this one time, the Gabriel/Collins/Banks/Rutherford/ Hackett line-up had come with a quirky four-minute song that was nevertheless worth a shot at the singles market. The track was, of course, “I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe).”

So close to the Top 20

The track found itself getting airplay on BBC Radio 1, fuelling a No.44 debut on the sales chart, followed by a climb to No.29. It then came within an ace of a Top 20 ranking, jumping to No.21 and staying there a second week before falling away. Genesis would have to wait almost three years more before getting that first Top 20 hit, with the Pigeons EP.

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The attention afforded “I Know What I Like” gave the parent album new sales momentum, too. Selling England By The Pound had debuted and peaked at No.3 in the UK in an initial nine-week chart run. But it returned to the countdown a week before “I Know What I Like” and climbed as high as No.14 in its second run.

Buy or stream “I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)” on Selling England By The Pound.