Phil Collins (And Other Genesis Types)

[rockhopper penguin 2,265]

 

 

He looks like a 65 year old with an underlying health problem. He could be here a few days or a few decades, no need to add him to the list.

You are wrong. I've seen this in Africa. He is against all odds.

I think maybe your supper's ready.

[Youwanticewiththat 611]

 

He looks like a 65 year old with an underlying health problem. He could be here a few days or a few decades, no need to add him to the list.

 

You are wrong. I've seen this in Africa. He is against all odds.

 

There may yet be a Trick in The Tail.

[Davey Jones' Locker 1,324]

The "Genesis: Together and Apart" documentary finally screened over here. Man, Phil looked and sounded terrible in some of his interview clips. The booze has really taken its toll on him. Wrinkles half way up his bald head and badly sagging skin around his throat, showing it has lost a lot of elasticity. It also looked like he had some kind of scar on his throat from an op (or maybe an irate Peter Gabriel fan tried to kill him.)

 

If his voice is as croaky when he sings on this comeback tour as it was during the interviews, things are going to fall apart really quickly. I have a feeling these concerts might end in tears...

[Weebl 216]

I read an article about Phil Collins saying how he was an alcoholic, then recovered, but he apparently still drinks even though he had alcoholism and recovered?

[RobertMugabe 437]

I read an article about Phil Collins saying how he was an alcoholic, then recovered, but he apparently still drinks even though he had alcoholism and recovered?

Nah you just watching Phil Mitchell on Eastenders

[Deathray 2,940]

I read an article about Phil Collins saying how he was an alcoholic, then recovered, but he apparently still drinks even though he had alcoholism and recovered?

 

Yup this was in October last year, sounds like the beginnings of him falling back on the wagon.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-37714459

 

 

According to the book, he has been sober for three years - so he notices my concern when he orders that glass of wine.

"These days, I'm quite capable of having two or three glasses and that's enough for me, thank you," he says, matter-of-factly.

[Davey Jones' Locker 1,324]

 

I read an article about Phil Collins saying how he was an alcoholic, then recovered, but he apparently still drinks even though he had alcoholism and recovered?

 

Yup this was in October last year, sounds like the beginnings of him falling back on the wagon.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-37714459

 

 

According to the book, he has been sober for three years - so he notices my concern when he orders that glass of wine.

"These days, I'm quite capable of having two or three glasses and that's enough for me, thank you," he says, matter-of-factly.

 

Having seen the documentary now, I can't really imagine Phil living long into his 80s.

[RobertMugabe 437]

 

 

I read an article about Phil Collins saying how he was an alcoholic, then recovered, but he apparently still drinks even though he had alcoholism and recovered?

Yup this was in October last year, sounds like the beginnings of him falling back on the wagon.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-37714459

 

 

According to the book, he has been sober for three years - so he notices my concern when he orders that glass of wine.

"These days, I'm quite capable of having two or three glasses and that's enough for me, thank you," he says, matter-of-factly.

Having seen the documentary now, I can't really imagine Phil living long into his 80s.

 

You saying he is against all odds?

[Davey Jones' Locker 1,324]

 

Phil's autobiography is out soon. Tempting fate?

 

and taunting us

 

Just like the late Ronnie Biggs did!

 

I saw it in a bookstore in my lunch hour so I had a bit of a read... Rather, I should say "tried to read" because it was some of the worst prose I have ever lain my eyes upon... No wonder Phil's lyrics are so bad: he is semi-illiterate.

 

Anyway, for DL types, the main thing to note is that is alcoholism was really bad, as in drunk on planes, pancreatitis, falling in the shower, etc. He's definitely done enough damage to himself to knock a few years off his life.

 

Now for some general tidbits for all the Genesis fans on here:

 

* In the opening pages, Phil is suckered in by an obviously-fake psychic. Apparently his mum and Andy (his first wife) were also into such bollocks.

 

* He went to Neverland and thought nothing of letting his young girls play unsupervised upstairs. He thought Jacko was a very sweet and quiet man and not a weirdo at all...

 

* He does not think he has ever listened to the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway right through even to this day, although when he listens to snippets "it always surprises him" with its ideas.

 

* When Peter Gabriel left Genesis, Phil felt as close to him as when he had first joined. Ie, they had built no camaraderie whatsoever in the intervening five years on the road together...

 

* Ronnie Caryl, when his audition failed, still went along to each concert to support Phil and the band, then would always get drunk and tell them how absolutely rubbish they were. On sobering he would then emphasise that he was still their friend.

 

* Ray Wilson's almost airbrushed out of history again, receiving a single sentence in the entire book.

 

* Phil says very little about Hackett either. Basically, the fact he always wore black suited him because he was a very intense man. He claims that there was "a reason why the guitarist in Spinal Tap looked just like Hackett" though.

 

* It is obvious that Phil genuinely did have the most rapport with Mike and Tony. Tony is a very quiet, non-descript man who "wouldn't say boo to a goose" according to Phil, unless that goose was playing a wrong chord.

 

* Phil is adamant that a Genesis reunion featuring Pete and Steve would only play the songs that Pete sang when he was in the band and they still simply wouldn't have the mass appeal since those songs are only for a very small niche audience.

 

That's about it... The book doesn't really change my opinion of Phil much. The only thing that does surprise me is that I thought he and Pete might have had more of a bond since he played drums on PG3 and Pete did backing vocals on Take Me Home.

 

Overall, Phil still comes across as a shallow, egotistical little git though, without much depth, just confirming everyone's impression of him...

[Davey Jones' Locker 1,324]

I've just been listening to Anna-Frid's "Something Going On" album for the first time, which was notoriously produced by Phil.  My goodness, he really loves using stupid echo effects on her voice.  She had one of the most beloved voices in the field of commercial pop (well 50% of the most beloved voice at any rate!), so what does our Phil do? Drown her in cheesey echo effects. 

 

 

Anyway, I have been thinking a bit about Genesis lately since reading parts of Phil's autobiography.  I am starting to realise that the only Genesis members I would actually probably like/would want to have a beer with are Pete and (maybe) Steve.  Phil's... well, Phil... but Tony and Mike also seem like creeps the way they completely ostracised Ray Wilson after Calling All Stations flopped. He was a disaster for the band but he was THEIR hiring decision. Also, the way Mike and Tony colluded with Phil to throw out all attempts at artistry in chase of the almighty dollar/pound irks. They seem like very political people and the type of English upperclassmen who don't disclose what they really think and would rather stab you in the back then let you know they have a problem with you that you could address if you were informed about it.

 

Don't really know much about Steve as a person but he seems fairly genial in interviews. He still doesn't much discuss why he resigned (he always uses a stock answer that he wanted to record more of his own compositions but hints that there was more to it). I suspect it was basically down to band politics and the trio being a bit of a clique towards him. Tony looked really uncomfortable when Steve talked about leaving in the doco. (Don't know much about Ant Phillips as a person either.)

 

Pete definitely sounds the most humane, albeit somewhat eccentric, of them.  He might have some weird hippie ideas at times but his heart seems to be in the right place and he maintained his artistic integrity and has really put an effort into his human rights work and comes across as a genuinely thoughtful person. I really can't imagine him shafting Ray the way his former bandmates did.  Pity the other three guys didn't leave Genesis instead, leaving Gabriel and Hackett to record a Genesis album called "And Then There Were Two"!

 

The only real problem I have with Pete is that he tends to equate artsy with ponderous way too often.  He needs to record some upbeat fun stuff occassionally - can still be arty without being dark. Being avant garde and taking risks means he tends to be it and miss too (I think many Genesis fans would be torn between this kind of risk-taking resulting in failure and the middle of the road, low-risk commercial strategy employed by 1980s Genesis where a lot of music worked in a commercial sense but there weren't that many spectacular high points either.)

 

 

//end rant

 

Back on topic: Phil isn't dead yet.

[YoungWillz 21,033]

My copy of Phil's autobiography fell apart. Apparently a jacket was required.

 

I'll join you in that coat DJL.

[Davey Jones' Locker 1,324]

1 hour ago, YoungWillz said:

My copy of Phil's autobiography fell apart. Apparently a jacket was required.

 

I'll join you in that coat DJL.

Sorry, I am straight, Willz.

[Davey Jones' Locker 1,324]

This is an interesting discussion regarding Hackett versus everyone: http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/how-did-steve-hackett-alienate-mike-rutherford-and-tony-banks-so-much.396144/

 

Another thread on the same site on Ray's treatment:

 

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/ray-wilson-treated-poorly-by-banks-and-rutherford-genesis.198078/

[Davey Jones' Locker 1,324]

Found this interview from late last year:

 

 

You recently got sober. What did you learn from the experience?
I didn't know I was close to dying. If I had carried on drinking, my organs would have started shutting down. I also didn't know the effect it was having on my kids. I was falling down because I was mixing alcohol with [pain] medication. One time I was watching TV and I got up to give my sons a hug. I fell down and my teeth made two marks in the tiles. There was lots of blood. I remember Matthew saying to their nanny, "Daddy's fallen over!" Putting an eight-year-old through that, it gives me chills. By the time I stopped, my family disintegrated. Within six months, they'd moved away.

 

"By the time I stopped drinking, my family disintegrated."

 

Did you emerge a stronger person?
Wiser, yeah. I got a sense of mortality, and then I didn't drink for three years. Then, when we had our first Christmas in our new home, I had a couple of glasses of wine, but now it doesn't go anywhere. An alcoholic is someone that wants to see the bottom of the bottle. I don't consider myself an alcoholic. I made some mistakes, for sure.

After injuring your back, you were unable to play drums anymore. How did you come to terms with that?
It happened gradually on the Genesis reunion tour in 2007. Then I played with Clapton at Albert Hall for one song, and I had that feeling of "This isn't happening." That kind of scared me. The one thing I could rely on in life was that I could sit down at the drums and it would sound good, and suddenly I couldn't pull it together. Now, I've got a drum kit in my garage and I've got into a routine of practicing. I'm trying to get my hands to feel natural again when I hold a pair of sticks. I've got some comeback shows booked for next year, and we'll see what happens.

 

Any chance you'll do more Genesis shows in the future?
Writing the book reminded me how close we were. Tony [Banks], Mike [Rutherford] and I went out on my birthday in London. We're still great pals. Anything can happen, really. I just don't want to suddenly take the brakes off and start flying off and doing things. I want to do things carefully and think about the consequences.

 

Source:  http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/phil-collins-on-sobriety-biggest-regrets-genesis-future-w451714

 

 

Also, a random bit of trivia:  I recently learned that Kenny "R2-D2" Baker once boarded with the Collins family for a while!

[Spade_Cooley 9,515]

"Horror fall" for Phil Collins, shows cancelled. 

[YoungWillz 21,033]

3 minutes ago, Spade_Cooley said:

"Horror fall" for Phil Collins, shows cancelled. 

Mama!

[msc 18,438]

Being ignoring the Phil Collins stuff, but looking at those pics, folk are right: he looks awful.

 

Not awful "right on the shortlist for 2018", mind.

[Toast 16,131]

As for calling his tour/book "Not Dead Yet", I was reminded of David Gest calling his tour "David Gest Is Not Dead".

Shouldn't goad the Reaper like that.

[msc 18,438]

2 minutes ago, Toast said:

As for calling his tour/book "Not Dead Yet", I was reminded of David Gest calling his tour "David Gest Is Not Dead".

Shouldn't goad the Reaper like that.

 

When I heard that tour was the "David Gest is not Dead" tour, and it was going AHEAD despite his demise, I nearly bloody joined him laughing too hard.

[ObakeFilter 894]

3 hours ago, msc said:

Being ignoring the Phil Collins stuff, but looking at those pics, folk are right: he looks awful.

 

Not awful "right on the shortlist for 2018", mind.

The afterfall pics are also not easy to watch.

[Youwanticewiththat 611]

Who's been let loose in mummy's make-up box again?  Hasn't quite mastered 'contouring'.

[Lord Fellatio Nelson 6,218]

4 hours ago, ObakeFilter said:

The afterfall pics are also not easy to watch.

Fucking hell, it was supposed to be a serious fall.

Fucking twat.

[Lord Fellatio Nelson 6,218]

2 hours ago, Youwanticewiththat said:

Who's been let loose in mummy's make-up box again?  Hasn't quite mastered 'contouring'.

He probably hasnt mastered the dress, wig and high heels either.

[Toast 16,131]

1 hour ago, Lord Fellatio Nelson said:

Fucking hell, it was supposed to be a serious fall.

Fucking twat.

 

A "horror" fall, even.

[maryportfuncity 10,645]

7 hours ago, ObakeFilter said:

The afterfall pics are also not easy to watch.

 

 

Relax girls, he's married!