Back in N.Y.C. Lyrics

Lyric discussion by Angus 

Cover art for Back in N.Y.C. lyrics by Genesis

I'm mostly interested in the phrase "progressive hypocrites" since it's probably the only soluble line in the whole album. I suppose there are white progressives (like the Meathead in All in the Family) who try to understand PR youth like Rael, but the "hypocrites" part isn't so obvious. Maybe being white, middle-class and aloof, Rael doesn't relate to them (as minorarities tended not to relate to the Meathead) thus he thinks them hypocritical.

Song Meaning

@Angus "Your progressive hypocrites hand out their trash But it was mine in the first place, so I'll burn it to ash" I'm inclined to think Gabriel was taking a swipe at the snobbery in the music scene at the time surrounding progressive rock or indeed surrounding Genesis themselves. Whether it was aimed at the whole thing in general, or at individuals, bands, journalists etc is open to debate!