Love Phil. I've always found there's a very dark undercurrent to a lot of his music, especially his first couple of solo albums, that goes a little unheralded. Some of those songs are practically cries for help. He always had the image of an amiable, happy go lucky bloke that makes friendly mass-produced pop, and that's true too of course, but I think there's an ominous edge that a lot of people underrate.
Yes it seems to run third in all of the polls. Thoroughly enjoying it. Helps I like this Genesis era. The studio stuff is a good bonus. You Might Recall is a great number. Very keyboard heavy. Who plays the lead guitar on this? Rutherford? Pretty good for a bass player.
"In the Air Tonight" is the debut solo single by the English drummer and singer-songwriter Phil Collins. It was released as the lead single from Collins's debut solo album, Face Value, in January 1981. As far as the UK goes, the above is factually correct (and that's why the initial UK copies of the 7" were packaged in a cartoon booklet to explain who Phil Collins is and where he came from...). It also has a lower Virgin Records catalogue number than any other solo Phil single...
I totally agree with you - in fact I still maintain that for me, this is one of the very best studio drum tracks ever recorded. It was done late at night, when they both decided to run through the track a few times, and they kept one of those takes for the final record. They way Phil powers the song along, pushing just ahead of the beat all the time; the syncopation between the guitar, bass, drums for the verse riff; the sound of the drums as they were recorded plus the way he incorporates the cymbals / bass drum hits into the fills...it's an absolute joy to listen to! Plus the song itself is a gem, fully deserved it's #1 status here in the UK, and both Phils sing their hearts out. One of the pinnacles of Phil Collins career, and there have been MANY of those through the years. He should be regarded as a national treasure.
Had his era been the 60s, he be held in higher esteem. Same for Billy Joel and John Mellencamp. All three seem frustrated with their legacies. Phil nearly drank himself to death by his own admission, still seems to be struggling.
Many great drummers through the years, but I think Phil’s drumming stands out for its creativity, offbeat fills/tempos, complex parts, etc. I feel he is one of the best if not thee best drummer in his style of music. Take songs like Hand in Hand, Suppers Ready or his drum solos with Chester Thompson. He also has the ability to use his voice like an instrument as well. And So To F and Sun In The Night with Brand X are examples of that. Even a simple song like Inside Out from his solo career crashes in with distinctive drum hits that you know is him. He has a long careers worth of examples showing how he stands out from most.
Three Sides Live: You Might Recall is a great little song. Other highlights include the Gabriel-era medley and of course solid materiel from Duke.
Big fan f his playing with rog era Genesis. Love his fusion playing with Brand X HATED all his solo stuff. He wasn't the best prog drummer, but he was great (surpassed by: Bruford, Palmer, Furio Chirico, and others). He wasn't the best fusion drummer (surpassed by: Lenny White, Billy Cobham, Narada Michael Waldon, Virgil Donati, Marco Minemann) but he was extremely good. This kills, and doesn't stop killing!
Do I like everything that Phil has done? God, no. But he's also provided me with years of entertainment, so I don't have anything bad to say about the guy. Let alone get into his personal life. For me, his peak years were about 1973-1977. Selling England, Lamb Lies Down, Trick Of The Tail, Seconds Out? Yes please.
His 80s output was excellent as a solo artist which he doesn't always get the recognition for. Face Value is quality, No Jacket Required really good, Hello, I Must Be Going is good, ...But Seriously has many of his best singles. He seemed to lose it by the 90s which hurt his reputation.
I think he is for many, regardless of what the cynics and piss takers think. I say that as someone who isn't a fan and has never bought a Phil Collins record. I agree that his drumming on Easy Lover is excellent. Solid as you get. As you say, a well deserved hit.
I think he made the ultimeate sin of airing his political views during the UK elections. Doing that kind of stuff normally kills off pop stars whether you agree with them or not!
Whether people personally agree or not, it only tends to substantially negatively affect musicians who go towards the blue side.
It can but Collins misread the mood of the country in 1997 when he threatened to leave the UK if Labour won (and then did). They won the biggest ever landslide after people had had enough of the blue side after 18 years of rule. It wasn't like it was a close or divisive election. The Conservatives were trounced. Their worst ever result. It's one thing to.endorse a candidate but when you genuinely threaten to leave the country and then do because of a change of government, it will hurt your reputation. It did really hurt his reputation at the time combined with his poor musical output in the 90s. It's water under the bridge now.
As a drummer: extraordinaire. I think comparing musicians, like it has been made in this thread, is often unfair. Take Bill Bruford, for example: he is amazing but his stint with Genesis didn't work as well as planned. I think both Phil and Bill are part of that elite of drummers that have reached such a level greatness that it's only a matter of who you prefer. Excellent tone, great technique and very musical parts. I wish he had taken some drum lessons if only to improve his posture: to me it's nothing short of a musical tragedy that he can't play drums anymore. I'll be blunt: the Phil Collins from 1975 to 1982 is my favorite drummer ever. After that he's still classy and unique but he had other priorities. As a singer: very fine. I like the way he evolved. He's not as expressive as Gabriel and some of the older material Genesis suffers for that but he's very convincing on albums such as "Duke" and "Abacab". As a solo artist: not everything he did is my cup of tea but it's all well done. Some of the his songs are indeed too sappy (and a bit cringy sometimes) but I like the first two albums and "Easy Lover" is a great song. As a person: I never met him. I find his persona and his sense of humor charming and enjoyable but I was too young to experience the Collins overdose some users refeered to. Overall: one of my favorite musicians and it saddens me when he gets a lot of undeserved crap. Not that he isn't mockable but when I hear people like that guy from Oasis saying he has no talent it pisses me off to no degree. I've also seen him in some of those annoying "worst drummers" lists: the moment you list Collins there you lose my respect for any musical opinion you may have.
That's not a favorite of mine, though I certainly don't dislike it or anything. But if you wish to include it in that period, sure.
I was just curious. I will say this, if you like Seconds Out, seek out a few of the 1977 soundboards...especially Southampton and Zurich, especially.
