From Genesis to Solo Titan

When I wrote about Genesis for Three Tune Tuesday a while back (Here), I knew a sequel post would have to follow—because, let’s face it, Phil Collins’ solo career is a whole thing in itself. The man became a juggernaut in the 1980s, releasing a string of albums that somehow balanced radio-friendly polish with genuine emotional weight.

What’s remarkable is how long he straddled both worlds. Unlike Peter Gabriel, who left Genesis to blaze his own trail, Collins stayed with the band even as his solo work exploded. Through the ’80s and early ’90s, he was pulling double duty, releasing best-selling solo albums and fronting one of the biggest progressive-turned-pop rock acts in the world. There’s a stretch of time where it’s hard to tell if Genesis was riding on Phil’s coattails or vice versa — but either way, they were both massive.

And Collins wasn’t just popular. He was inescapable. I came across a meme the other day on the GenX subreddit that claimed every 4th song on the radio was from him.

I don't know if that is true or not, but it sure seems like it was. At the height of his fame, it felt like every fourth song on the radio or MTV was either a solo Collins track, a Genesis single, or something he produced or drummed on for someone else. He was everywhere. He even voiced cartoon characters and composed songs for Disney movies. But beneath the ubiquity, there was real musicianship: Collins brought a jazz drummer’s sense of rhythm, a pop songwriter’s instinct for melody, and a surprising emotional depth to his lyrics.

His output was often dismissed by critics, especially in the ’90s backlash era — but I’ve always thought that was more about fashion than fairness. The guy could write a hook, pound a drum kit like few others, and deliver a vocal with unmistakable sincerity. He wasn't above experimentation either. You never quite knew if the next track was going to be slick radio fare, a moody piece of ambient gloom, or something deeply personal and raw.

Here are three tracks that, together, give you a pretty good feel for what made solo Collins tick.

Take Me Home

This is from the 1985 album No Jacket Required.

We’ll start with this because it is one of my favorites and seems to always find a home on any playlist I make. It’s hypnotic. At first listen you might think it is about going home, but Collins has said that it was actually based on One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and is about a patient in a mental institution. Knowing that, there’s a tension in the repetition of that chorus — take, take me home — as if the narrator is half-resigned to the idea that it’s never going to happen.

And yet, it’s also oddly uplifting. Maybe it’s those synth stabs, or the gospel-tinged backing vocals. One of those backing vocals is former Genesis bandmate Peter Gabriel — another is Sting. Or maybe it’s the fact that, when Collins performed this live, he usually closed the show with it. Or maybe it was the great music video that has him traveling the world. Whatever the case may be, it's a great song!

In the Air Tonight

This is from the 1981 album Face Value.

You know this one even if you think you don’t. It may the song he's most well-known for. I debated including it because you all know it (or should), but I just can't skip it. The atmospheric buildup. The mythologized divorce. The most famous drum fill in pop history.

It’s easy to parody this song, but harder to deny its power. It’s stark, moody, and completely unlike anything else on the radio at the time. Even today, it still sounds like little else out there. The production is sparse — just that creeping drum machine, eerie keyboards, and Collins’ voice circling the same emotional drain for four minutes before exploding into catharsis.

This track is the statement piece. It tells you right away that Phil wasn’t just the drummer who became a singer, he was the full package, and he had a lot of emotion to get out.

Here is a great live performance of the song.

Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)

This is from the 1984 Against All Odds soundtrack and also released as a single.

This might be his most raw vocal performance. You can hear the pain scraping at the edges of every line. And yet, it’s wrapped in such a perfectly built power ballad that it somehow made adult heartbreak into a Top 40 staple.

Written during the emotional aftershocks of his divorce, this track became a massive hit and helped cement Phil’s status. It’s also the prototype for about a dozen other Collins ballads — some better, some worse — but none quite as powerful as this first one.

There are plenty more I could have picked—“I Don’t Care Anymore”, “Something Happened on the Way to Heaven”, the political "Long Long Way to Go", or even the cheerier “Two Hearts”, but these three seem to capture the essence: the hurt, the hooks, and the homecoming.

What do you think? Are these the best three or do you have any better picks from his catalog?