Song · Genesis
“Mama” by Genesis
From the album Genesis (1983)
“Mama” by Genesis appears on 9 radio countdowns from 5 stations between 1991 and 2025. It was first released in 1983 on the album Genesis. Its best result is #486 on the 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2022). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #6,282 alternative song of all time.
Watch
Video from YouTube (Genesis). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube
"Mama" was the opening shot from Genesis's self-titled 1983 album, and it announces itself with pure menace: a harsh drum machine pattern cooked up by Mike Rutherford, spare, minor-key synthesizer lines creeping in, and then Phil Collins's voice drenched in reverb, hovering over it all like a ghost in an empty room. Tony Banks, Collins and Rutherford wrote the music together, and the band produced it with engineer Hugh Padgham.
It went to No. 4 in the UK and remains their biggest single there, and it reached the top 10 in Switzerland, Austria, Norway, Ireland and the Netherlands. America was cooler on it, holding it to No. 73 on the Hot 100.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Classic Rock
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 751 | CFNY 102.1 The Edge | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (1991 Edition) | 1002 |
| 1997 | 947 | 102.3 WBAB | WBAB Top 1,023 Rock and Roll Songs of All Time (1997) | 1023 |
| 2019 | 790 | 102.5 KZOK | KZOK Top 1025 of 2019 | 1025 |
| 2021 | 627 | Q104.3 | Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) | 1043 |
| 2022 | 676 | Q104.3 | Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2022) | 1043 |
| 2022 | 486 | 99.1 PLR | 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2022) | 500 |
| 2023 | 982 | Q104.3 | Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) | 1043 |
| 2024 | 966 | Q104.3 | Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2024) | 1043 |
| 2025 | 598 | Q104.3 | Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) | 1043 |
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Mama" by Genesis.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.