Touring began on 1 January

Prior to the 1977 tour, Bruford declined an offer to return as second drummer, leaving Collins searching for a replacement. He heard American drummer Chester Thompson , of Frank Zappa ‘s band and Weather Report , play a drum passage on ” More Trouble Every Day ” from Zappa’s live album Roxy & Elsewhere . Collins said, “It floored me completely … I had never met him. I rang him up and said, ‘Hi Chester, I’ve heard your stuff, would you like to play with Genesis?’ … He didn’t even audition!” Genesis toured Wind & Wuthering from January to July 1977 across Europe, North America and, for the first time, Brazil . The stage show cost £400,000 (equivalent to £2,400,000 in 2025. which featured a new PA system , lasers and smoke, and lighting supplied from two rows of Boeing 747 aircraft landing lights. Touring began on 1 January with three sold-out shows at the Rainbow Theatre in London, where 80,000 applications were made for the 8,000 available tickets. They returned to London for three nights at Earls Court , then the largest arena in Britain, supported by Richie Havens . The band’s growing popularity in North America led to television appearances and concerts organised in larger venues than previous tours, including Madison Square Garden in New York City. Their Brazilian dates were attended by over 150,000 people and a proposed 100,000-person gig was cancelled over rioting fears. An armed bodyguard accompanied each member throughout their stay.