Phil Collins, one of the biggest stars of the 1980s, has announced a comeback – with a tour in 2017 to follow re-released albums, a new hits collection, “Singles,” and an autobiography “Not Dead Yet.”Here are five things we learned as Collins spoke in London’s Royal Albert Hall about his return after retirement and struggles to overcome ill-health and alcohol problems.1: He will be mainly singing in concerts this time, not playing drums“I think I will just be singing. I have a drum kit in the garage. I will be getting to that – da-da-da-da – ‘In the Air Tonight.’ That is something I feel I should do. So it is just a question of getting the strength back in those fingers… I don’t think I will ever be able to play the way I used to… I had back surgery after 60 years of drumming messed my hips up.”2: The title of the book and tour are carefully considered“I decided to call the book ‘Not Yet Dead’ because a lot has been made of my health and also because they are still things to do – ‘not dead yet,’ still got things to do. The tour is ‘Not Yet Dead: Live.’ I am not sure how that will translate into Polish or Czechoslovakian or whatever. It is English humor, very Monty Pythoneseque.”3: His favorite songs“The ones I am most proud of, I think, are the ones that nobody takes any notice of. I never made a secret of the fact that ‘Both Sides’ (1993 fifth solo studio album) was my favorite record because I did everything myself and I found that the music just came out and I was doing things I had not done before. Over the years people tend to paint things into different corners. People tend to call the ‘Face Value’ album the divorce album, but actually it has some very optimistic songs. I feel less affection for ‘No Jacket Required’ and I feel more affection for ‘Hello I Must Be Going’ than I did for a long time. Of course, I could not do a concert without doing some of the hits. Some of them if I didn’t have to sing again that would be OK too. But it is my job, if people are going to come and hear me play and sing, they have got to have some of the things they have grown to like.”4: He’s proud to have influenced othersArtists such as Pharrell, Lorde, Kanye West and Beyoncé have liked Collins. “I usually hear about this stuff third hand. Lily, my daughter, texts me or calls me and says ‘have you seen what so-and-so says?’ And she will tell me what this person says and I say, ‘well, that’s nice, thank you.’ It is very nice to be thought of in those terms because I grew up a rhythm and blues fan, the Beatles were there, of course, but it was all R&B, Staxx and Motown and so it’s good having these guys see through the bad press, opinions and the negative stuff. They just hear it and they like it. I have heard great things about the Adele shows, who I think is the strongest artist we have had for a long time.”5: The new show is already taking shape“I have worked forever with (lighting designer) Patrick Woodruff, who has done the Stones and he has done Adele and Genesis so we have been starting work early on how the show could take form. It is going to be a tramp, a troll, a romp, which is a tromp, though my stuff that people know!”Collins will perform a five-night residency at the Royal Albert Hall in June next year, plus concerts at Cologne’s Lanxess Arena and Paris’s Accors Hotel Arena that month. Tickets go on sale on October 21. His autobiography is published by Penguin Random House and the “Singles” collection is on Atlantic.Take a Look at Him Now: Click here for a slideshow of images of Collins down the years.
↧