Fifty years of popular songs in ten videos

Her first concert, given by the first group of Progressive Rock in front of 2,000 people, in Ontario, Canada. Since then, Genesis has sold over 100 million albums and won tours around the world. The final performance of the legendary singer and drummer of the band, author of Eternal Success, ended on March 26, 2022 in London with a long standing ovation from the audience. We come back in time.

1976: “At Trick of the Tail” the group’s first video

the song “trick of the tail”, He appeared on their seventh album, Genesis (1976), and was the band’s first theme track from a video clip. This clip was directed by Bruce Gowers, responsible for the video for the song “Bohemian Rhapsody”, which appeared on Queen’s fourth album, “A Night at the Opera” (1975). It’s also the group’s first song released after Peter Gabriel’s departure, but it’s not the first song Phil Collins has sung. The drummer had already tried his hand at singing “For Absentee Friends”, from Genesis’ third album, “Kremy’s Nursery” (1971).

1981: “In the Air Tonight”, a poem of timeless despair

When he composes this deeply dark and sad piece, full of anger and despair, Phil Collins goes through a complex moment in his life. The artist, who saw his divorce so badly, decided in 1981 to follow in Peter Gabriel’s lead and released his first solo album “Face Value”, on which was “In the Air tonight” which quickly reached the top of the charts. . A total UFO in the pop world, between disco in decline and the beginnings of a new wave at the dawn of the ’80s, the title ends with a legendary break of the drum signed by the singer. Almost forty years later, in 2020, Tim and Fred Williams, young American twins who created a YouTube channel twin new trend, He posted a video clip showing them listening to Phil Colin’s song for the first time. The viral success of this video, which was shared on all networks, allowed “In the Air Tonight” to jump 1110% in sales and find itself in third place at the top of iTunes.

1983: “Mama”, Genesis’ first commercial success

Released in 1983 on the album of the same name by the group Genesis, the song peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart, number 31 on the French charts and number 73 on the US Billboard Hot 100. This is it The composition’s first single and also the group’s first true commercial success. The song deals with the theme of a young man who feels the urge to engage in prostitution. Immediately recognizable by its introduction formed with an industrial drum machine line developed by Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks’ synthesizer lines and Phil Collins’ vocals, the title would open the Genesis Grand Concert at Wembley Stadium in 1987.

1984: “Easy Lover”, the gold-drum song

Written and performed by Phil Collins and Earth, Wind & Fire vocalist Philip Bailey, with guitarist Nathan East, the song was released in November 1984 in the United States and 1985 in Europe. The title, which appeared on Philip Bailey’s solo album “Chinese Wall”, is gold-certified. It will be included in the album “Serious Hits… Live! by Phil Collins in 1990, and his combined albums “Hits” in 1998 and The Singles” in 2016.

” It falls in love easily “ It reached #1 on the charts in many countries, including Canada, the Netherlands, Ireland, Japan, and the UK, and #2 in the US after the aliens song “I Want to Know What Love”. It was nominated for a Grammy in 1986, and ranks 42 on Rolling Stones magazine’s 100 Greatest Titles list.

1985: “One Night”, one of the most romantic songs

Released on the opus “No Jacket Required” (1985), this song is one of the most romantic songs in Phil Collins’ repertoire and the song itself. On this track, we can hear an exciting and wonderful saxophone solo, played by Don Merrick, saxophonist of the Earth, Wind and Fire group, as well as synthesizers. ” one more night “ It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States.

1986: “The Invisible Touch” box, sold over 10 million copies

When it was released in 1969, Genesis’ debut album From Genesis To Revelation sold just 650 copies. These lackluster sales were partly due to a miscalculation by record stores. Record stores thought it was a religious album and put it in that category… “hidden touch” Released in 1986, it has sold over 10 million copies worldwide, becoming the group’s biggest commercial success. The track of the same name, Ho, enters the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. From this album, a real nursery was also extracted from the songs “Throwing It All Away”, “Land of Confusion”, “Tonight, Tonight, Tonight” and “In Too Deep”.

1989: “Another Day in Heaven”, Phil Collins hit

In this title from 1989, the singer evokes ordinary indifference towards the poor. A beggar woman calls a man in the street and asks him if he knows a place to sleep, because it is cold. But the man walks his way without looking at her and without turning around, and then begins to whistle to hide his embarrassment. In the chorus, Phil Collins addresses this ordinary passerby who could be him (or us): “Think twice, because for me and you, it’s a day like any other in heaven,” sings “The Artist.” While it was heavily criticized by the English press (How can a rich and famous musician seize the problem of poverty to make a song about it?), this The tube remains one of the singer’s best songs And one of his best songs ever. In 2003, Billboard included it in its ranking of the 100 Greatest Songs of All Time.

1991: “I Can’t Dance”, this song that made us dance for 30 years

Genesis returns in 1991 with a new disc, “We can’t dance”, the group’s 14th studio album and also the last album with Phil Collins, which contains the “I Can’t Dance” nugget. Written in one studio session, it is one of the band’s most popular songs. It was placed at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart, and in France, it is number nine on the charts. The album, which sold more than 10 million copies, was released at a time when club music was just beginning to become as commercial as it is today, and old Genesis pioneers had already expressed their disapproval of this type of music. Hence the craving for not conforming to this mold: “We can’t dance! (“We don’t know how to dance.”) Of course, the wonderful contrast of this massive tube is that it’s totally impossible to listen to without ants in the legs.

2000: “You’ll Be In My Heart”, Oscar for Best Film Song

In 1988, Phil Collins entered the cinema, as an actor, in the film David Greeen, “Mutt”, based on the attack on the Glasgow-London Postal Train. After many awards and global recognition, the peak of the artist’s career occurred in 2000 when he won the Academy Award for Best Song of Korean Origin for his movie. “You will remain in my heart”It was composed for the Disney movie “Tarzan”.