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Philip David Charles Collins (born January 30,
1951 in London), better known as Phil Collins, is
a United Kingdom|British rock and
roll|rock/popular music|pop musician. He was the
lead drummer for the jazz-fusion group Brand X and
progressive rock band Genesis (band)|Genesis, and,
after the departure of the latter's lead singer
Peter Gabriel, lead singer of Genesis.

Phil Collins has collaborated with such well known
musicians as George Harrison, Paul McCartney,
Robert Plant, Eric Clapton, Mike Oldfield, Sting
(musician)|Sting, John Cale, Brian Eno, Peter
Gabriel and Ravi Shankar.

== Childhood ==

Collins' ambitions to wield the sticks started
early when he was given a toy drum for Christmas
at the age of five. He instantly harboured
ambitions to drum properly and professionally, and
as he got older, his uncle made him a makeshift
kit for him to practice on. By the time he was a
teenager he was a fully accomplished drummer.

His career had begun early, as a child actor and
model (person)|model, highlights of which included
appearing on stage in Oliver! as the Artful Dodger
and as an extra on The Beatles|The Beatles’
A Hard Day's Night (movie)|A Hard Day's Night,
though he jokes “Paul McCartney
doesn’t believe me!”

== From Genesis to Revelation ==



Phil Collins gained acclaim as a
“technically sound drummer” and sang
lead vocals on “For Absent Friends”
(from Nursery Cryme) and “More Fool
Me” (from Selling England by the Pound).
Collins was also Genesis’ primary backing
vocalist up until 1975. Genesis gained acclaim as
a major progressive rock outfit with compositions
such as 1972's "Supper's Ready", their 23 minute
magnum opus from Foxtrot (album)|Foxtrot.

In 1975, after the final tour supporting
Genesis’ ambitious, concept album The Lamb
Lies Down on Broadway, frontman Peter Gabriel left
the group. After an unfruitful search for a new
singer, Collins took over as lead vocalist. The
group also recruited former Yes drummer Bill
Bruford and later Chester Thompson to play drums
during live shows. The follow up album A Trick of
the Tail outsold all previous Genesis albums
combined. The band enjoyed its most commercially
successful period with Collins as vocalist, which
essentially began in 1978 when the single "Follow
You, Follow Me" became their first UK Top 10 hit.

During the 1970s Collins also played drums for the
jazz fusion band Brand X and appeared on albums by
Brian Eno, Robert Fripp and John Cale. In the
1980s he did session drumming for such
high-profile acts as Adam Ant, Robert Plant,
Howard Jones and Tears for Fears.

In the 1980s, Genesis moved from an progressive
rock base to one that was more pop music|pop
oriented. With Phil Collins as lead singer, the
group scored a string of successful albums,
including the 1986 Invisible Touch, which was
their first UK top hit. The group also received an
MTV “Video of the Year” award for
“Land of Confusion”.

Phil Collins parted ways with Genesis in 1995
after a massive world tour. Collins and Gabriel
reunited with Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and
Steve Hackett in 1999 to re-record "Carpet Crawl"
("The Carpet Crawlers") from The Lamb Lies Down on
Broadway for Genesis’ Turn It On Again: The
Hits.

== Solo career ==

Phil Collins vented frustrations in his marital
life by composing new material which formed the
bulk of his first solo album Face Value in 1981.
The song “In the Air Tonight” launched
Phil Collins as a solo artist and is now part of
folklore. There are many stories around the song,
but usually they have to do with Phil seeing a man
let someone drown, writing the song about the man,
then inviting him to its debut, and singing it
while the man is in the spotlight. This is purely
myth; Collins says the song, like the album,
refers to his feelings about his divorce from his
first wife, Andrea.



Phil Collins continued to record as a solo artist
and with Genesis in 1983 releasing a Number One
hit rendition of The Supremes’ “You
Can’t Hurry Love” and the Genesis
Genesis (album)|self titled album which went to
Number 9 on the Billboard magazine|Billboard Album
Charts,

He wrote and performed the award-winning title
song to the movie Against All Odds in 1984 and
appeared as drummer at the Band Aid (band)|Band
Aid recording at the end of the year.

In 1985, Phil Collins performed at Live Aid at
both Wembley stadium in England and JFK Stadium in
Philadelphia, United States.  He accomplished the
feat by performing early in the day as a solo
artist and with Sting at Wembley.  Immediately
after his performance he boarded a Concorde to
perform his solo material and drum for Led
Zeppelin.

The same year, Collins released his most
successful album No Jacket Required, which
contained hits like "Sussudio", "One More Night"
and "Take Me Home" which featured ex-bandmate
Peter Gabriel and Sting (musician)|Sting as
backing vocalists. Phil also enjoyed another UK
Number 1 with Easy Lover, a duet with Philip
Bailey that same year. He also recorded the
critically-acclaimed Separate Lives, a duet with
Marilyn Martin.

Collins began 1988 by acting in the movie Buster
(movie)|Buster, in which he played The Great Train
Robbery of 1963|train robber Buster Edwards. Phil
Collins’ rendition of “A Groovy Kind
of Love” for that movie reached Number One
on the charts. The film also spawned the hit
single Two Hearts, which Collins wrote in
collaboration with legendary Motown songwriter
Lamont Dozier.  He also played a cameo role in
Miami Vice and guest starred in some sketches with
The Two Ronnies.

In 1989, Collins produced another hugely
successful album, But Seriously..., which featured
the anti-homelessness anthem Another Day In
Paradise. The song went to Number 1 on the
Billboard US Charts and won Phil Collins a Grammy
for “Record of the Year” (1990). Other
songs included Hang in Long Enough, Do You
Remember?, and I Wish it Would Rain Down(the
latter featured long-time friend Eric Clapton on
guitar.

Collins' record sales dropped after the 1993
release of Both Sides, a largely experimental
album which ironically, according to Collins is
his finest, despite the fact that he abandoned the
winning formula that had brought him so much
success in the '80s. Subsequent releases never
reached the levels of his 1980s albums. Collins'
total worldwide album sales, including Genesis
albums, are approximately two hundred million.

Phil Collins' 1996 album Dance Into the Light
included songs like "No Matter Who", a rendition
of Bob Dylan|Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are
A-Changin" and the comical music video "Wear My
Hat" which featured Danny DeVito. The album failed
to elicit much commercial interest, although
stylistically it harked back to the sound of his
'80s smashes.  

His latest studio album, 2002's Testify
(album)|Testify met with a similar fate, adored by
fans but failing to make much impact on the
mainstream charts.  Testify featured the Leo Sayer
cover Can't Stop Loving You, and Come With Me - a
heartfelt father-to-child song originally written
in 1990 but finally recorded for Collins' baby son
Nicholas.  (His son Matthew was born in December
2004.)

Collins' passion for Big Band music is well
documented. In 1996, Phil formed the "Phil Collins
Big Band", which, with Phil as drummer, performed
jazz renditions of Phil Collins and Genesis hits.
The Phil Collins Big Band also did a world tour in
1998 and performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival.

Collins is a successful songwriter, and was asked
by The Walt Disney Company to produce the score
for the animation|animated film Tarzan (1999
movie)|Tarzan in 1999. His song "You'll Be in My
Heart" won an Academy Award. Disney hired Collins
in 2003 for the soundtrack to another animated
feature film, Brother Bear.

Collins does not read and write conventional
musical notation but uses a system of his own
devising. In recent years he has reportedly been
hearing impairment|losing his hearing in one ear,
and in 2003 announced a farewell tour. The
previous year he accepted an invitation to be the
drummer in the 'house band' at the rock concert
celebrating Elizabeth II of the United
Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. He
played drums for the likes of Paul McCartney, Ozzy
Osbourne and Cliff Richard.

He is married to his third wife and lives in
Switzerland.

== Band ==
Here are all the current members of Phil's touring
band.
* Phil Collins - drums, lead vocals
* Gerald Albright - saxophone
* Bill Cantos - backing vocals
* Ronnie Caryl - rhythm guitar, backing vocals
* Brad Cole - keyboards, vocoder on In The Air
Tonight.
* Luis Conte - percussion instrument|percussion
* Lynne Fiddmont-Lindsey - backing vocals
* Dan Fornero - trumpet
* Connie Jackson-Comegys - backing vocals
* Amy Keys - backing vocals
* Harry Kim - trumpet, Horns music
director|director
* Arnold McCuller - backing vocals
* Leland Sklar - bass guitar
* Daryl Stuermer - guitar
* Chester Thompson - drums
* Lamont Van Hooke - backing vocals
* Arturo Velasco - trombone

===Former touring band muscians===
* Bridgette Bryant - backing vocals (But Seriously
tour, 1990)
* Rhamlee Michael Davis - trumpet (Hello, I Must
Be Going!-But Seriously tours, 1982-1990)
* Nathan East - bass guitar, backing vocals (Both
Sides-Dance Into the Light tours, 1994-1997)
* Mo Foster - bass guitar (Hello, I Must Be Going!
tour, 1982)
* Michael Harris - trumpet - (Hello, I Must Be
Going!-No Jacket Required tours, (1982-1986)
* Ricky Lawson - drums - (Both Sides tour-Dance
Into the Light tour, 1994 - 1997)
* John Mahon - percussion instrument|percussion,
(MusiCares 2000)
* Don Myrick - saxophone, (Hello, I Must Be
Going!-But Seriously tours, 1982 - 1990)
* Peter Robinson - keyboards, vocoder - (Hello, I
Must Be Going!-No Jacket Required tours,
1982-1986)
* Louis Satterfield|Louis "Lui Lui" Satterfield -
trombone, (Hello, I Must Be Going!-But Seriously
tours, 1982-1990
* Fred White - backing vocals (But Seriously tour,
1990)
* Andrew Woolfolk - saxophone (Both Sides-Dance
Into the Light tours, 1994-1987)

===Former studio musicians===
* Stephen Bishop (musician)|Stephen Bishop -
backing vocals
* Gary Barnacle - saxaphone
* Alex Brown - backing vocals
* Paul Bushnell - bass guitar
* Eric Clapton - guitar
* David Crosby - backing vocals
* Martyn Ford - strings music conductor|conductor
* David Frank - bass guitar, keyboards
* Peter Gabriel - backing vocals
* John Giblin - bass guitar
* Nick Glennie-Smith - keyboards
* Alphonso Johnson - bass guitar
* Marva King - backing vocals
* Arif Mardin - strings music conductor|conductor
* Dominic Miller - guitar
* James Muhoberec - keyboards
* Pino Palladino - bass guitar
* Joe Partridge - slide guitar
* Tim Pierce - guitar
* Eric Rigler - pipes
* James Sangar - additional programming
* Ronnie Scott - saxaphone|tenor saxaphone
* L. Shankar - vocal effects
* Shorokav - violins
* Sting - backing vocals
* Helen Terry - backing vocals
* Steve Winwood - Hammond Organ

All past touring members worked with Phil in the
studio except for Bryant, Lawson, Mahon, and
White.

== Albums ==

*1981: Face Value #1 UK, #7 US, US Sales:
5,000,000, Worldwide Sales: 19,000,000
*1982: Hello, I Must Be Going! (album)|Hello, I
Must Be Going #2 UK, #8 US, US Sales: 3,000,000
Worldwide Sales: 15,000,000
*1985: No Jacket Required #1 UK, #1 US, US Sales:
12,000,000 Worldwide Sales: 32,000,000
*1987: 12"ers (remixes compilation) Worldwide
Sales: 1,000,000
*1989: But Seriously... #1 UK, #1 US, US Sales:
4,000,000 Worldwide Sales: 26,000,000
*1990: Serious Hits... Live! (live) #2 UK, #11 US,
US Sales: 4,000,000 Worldwide Sales: 22,000,000
*1993: Both Sides #1 UK, #13 US, US Sales:
1,000,000 Worldwide Sales: 10,000,000
*1996: Dance into the Light #4 UK, #23 US, US
Sales: 500,000 Worldwide Sales: 5,000,000
*1998: Hits (compilation) #1 UK, #18 US, US Sales:
2,000,000 Worldwide Sales: 15,000,000
*1999: A Hot Night in Paris (live) Worldwide
Sales: 1,000,000
*2002: Testify (album)|Testify #15 UK, #30 US
Worldwide Sales: 5,000,000
*2004: Platinum Collection (Face Value, No Jacket
Required and But Seriously packaged together) #4
UK Worldwide Sales: 1,000,000
*2004: Love Songs: A Compilation... Old and New
(compilation) #9 UK, #51 US Worldwide Sales:
3,000,000

*CAREER: 155,000,000 Albums sold (314,000,000
including Genesis)

=== Hit singles ===

* from "Face Value"
** 1981 "In the Air Tonight" #2 UK, #19 US
** 1981 "I Missed Again" #14 UK, #19 US
** 1981 "If Leaving Me Is Easy" #17 UK

* from "Hello, I Must Be Going"
** 1982 "You Can't Hurry Love" #1 UK, #10 US
** 1983 "I Don't Care Anymore" #39 US

* from "Against All Odds" soundtrack
** 1984 "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)"
#2 UK, #1 US

* from "Chinese Wall" (album by Philip Bailey)
** 1985 "Easy Lover" (duet with Philip Bailey) #1
UK, #2 US

* from "No Jacket Required"
** 1985 "One More Night" #4 UK, #1 US
** 1985 "Take Me Home" #19 UK, #7 US (1986
release)
** 1985 "Don't Lose My Number" #4 US
** 1985 "Sussudio" #12 UK, #1 US

* from "White Nights" soundtrack
** 1985 "Separate Lives" (with Marilyn Martin) #4
UK, #1 US

* non-album single
** 1988 "In the Air Tonight" (remix) #4 UK

* from "Buster" soundtrack
** 1988 "A Groovy Kind of Love" #1 UK, #1 US
** 1988 "Two Hearts" #6 UK, #1 US

* from "But Seriously"
** 1989 "Another Day in Paradise" #2 UK, #1 US
** 1990 "I Wish It Would Rain Down" #7 UK, #3 US
** 1990 "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven"
#15 UK, #4 US
** 1990 "That's Just the Way It Is" #26 UK
** 1990 "Do You Remember?" #4 US
** 1990 "Hang in Long Enough" #34 UK, #23 US

* from "Both Sides"
** 1993 "Both Sides of the Story" #7 UK, #25 US
** 1994 "Everyday" #15 UK, #24 US

* from "Dance into the Light"
** 1996 "Dance into the Light" #9 UK
** 1996 "It's in Your Eyes" #30 UK

* from "Hits"
** 1998 "True Colours" #26 UK

* from "Tarzan" soundtrack
** 1999 "You'll Be in My Heart" #17 UK, #21 US

* from "Urban Renewal" (a Phil Collins tribute
album)
** 2001 "In the Air Tonite" (Lil' Kim feat. Phil
Collins) #26 UK

* from "Testify"
** 2002 "Can't Stop Loving You" #27 UK

* from "Thug World Order" (album by Bone
Thugs-N-Harmony)
** 2003 "Home" (Bone Thugs-N-Harmony feat. Phil
Collins) #19 UK

==See also==
*Best selling music artists

==External link==
*http://www.philcollins.co.uk Phil Collins's
website
*http://www.genesis-music.com Genesis’
official website