He was described again and again as an unlikely superstar–a relatively nondescript-looking ”regular guy,” more likely to be seen sporting a rugby shirt or unhip argyle sweater than trendy designer duds and a fashionably chic persona. Nevertheless, Phil Collins spent most of last year being just about the hottest act around. On a break from Genesis, the hugely popular, mainstream British pop band he had fronted for a decade, the drummer-turned-singer saw his third solo album, ”No Jacket Required,” spend four weeks at No. 1 in the spring of 1985; it would eventually sell more than 5 million copies and spawn several hit singles, including the No. 1-ranked ”One More Night.”
He had no plans to leave Genesis, Collins insisted early on, as his solo career began its meteoric rise. But by late summer, when he embarked on a triumphant 1985 stadium tour, it was clear that Collins no longer was dependent upon Genesis for his artistic expression or commercial success. There was no real reason for him to return at all, some fans speculated, recalling that the singer had noted in a Rolling Stone interview that ”poor old Genesis” did get in the way of his mushrooming career as a solo artist and producer. It seemed as if the writing was on the wall–or at least, the question scrawled there was too big to ignore: Would Genesis end up a casualty of Collins` success (assuming that it hadn`t already)?
It hadn`t, and it didn`t. The band`s current tour, which brings them to Rosemont Horizon for no less than six nights, Oct. 5 through 10, is proof that they`re still together. And, as keyboard player Tony Banks tells it, while pop fans were pondering the band`s future, he and guitarist Mike Rutherford–the two people who presumably should be most concerned over Collins` possible defection–weren`t worried at all about Genesis` future.
”When we finished (the Genesis album before the current one), we made a date to meet again in about 18 months to start recording together again,”
says Banks, who admits that he and Rutherford were ”surprised” by the extent of Collins` solo success. ”We were planning to tour again all along. All of us have always done solo projects, but because Phil obviously had such a high profile in the period we were apart, a lot of people assumed that the band must (be finished). As far as we were concerned, it was always going.”
Banks, who co-founded Genesis with several of his schoolmates in the mid- 1960s (Collins was recruited in the early 1970s), approaches the matter of Collins` other career and its impact on Genesis with better grace than might be expected, considering that it`s something he`s asked about continually.
”I might be sick of talking about the whole thing by the end of the tour,” cheerfully acknowledges Banks. ”But I kind of anticipated the questions. Obviously, he has become such a successful solo artist, the subject is going to come up all the time. But it doesn`t affect the interband relationship. It hasn`t affected the way we go about doing our own music. And it probably doesn`t do the band any harm; it gives us the chance for a wider audience. Some people might react differently than I do, but in the main, I think it all helps. It`s just more publicity.”
Has Collins` solo success created any ego problems within the band? ”I don`t think so, really, not at this stage,” says Banks.
”I mean, if this had happened when we were much younger, it would have probably been more of a problem,” adds the keyboard player, who, like Collins and Rutherford, is in his mid-30s. ”I don`t think the band would have had the strength to stay together. Now, though, we`ve got so much history behind us as a group, that it`s no problem. It`s all been quite fun, really. Obviously, the essential thing to making it all work is Phil`s attitude, and he keeps a very level head. He`s more confident now than he used to be, but he still enjoys working within the Genesis framework.”
Banks terms the response to the current Genesis tour, which includes multi-night engagements in a number of cities, as ”a bit frightening.” He explains, ”We hadn`t even finalized what we were going to be doing in the show, and people had bought tickets all over the place. We have always tried to put on good live shows, but. . . . Sometimes you wonder if people are expecting too much.”
The new show, which depends largely on a sophisticated computerized lighting system for visual special effects, will feature plenty of music from the band`s past and present, including material from their new million-selling album, ”Invisible Touch.” But don`t expect Collins to do any of his solo hits or Rutherford to reprise anything from his recent hit album with his other band, Mike & the Mechanics. (Banks` recent solo projects have been instrumental film scores for a couple of movies, ”neither of which did particularly well.”)
”It`s a totally Genesis show,” confirms Banks, who notes that one of the best things about working with the band is its democratic approach. ”We all write the songs,” he says, ”so we`re all equally involved. That`s how we`ve always tried to do things, right from the word go. Everybody in the group has a right to voice his opinion and try to get his own way.
”When we had five people in the group, that obviously created a certain amount of friction,” adds the keyboard player, referring to the years before guitarist Steve Hackett and theatrical vocalist and front man Peter Gabriel left the band for solo careers. (Gabriel, who occasionally has shown up at Genesis concerts and joined his old bandmates for an impromptu encore or two, enjoyed mainstream success earlier this year with the hit single,
”Sledgehammer,” after years as a critical and cult favorite.) ”But now that we are down to three people, we find it very easy. Nothing is sacred, and anybody can do anything. Nobody gets heavy-handed. We`ve managed to avoid the kind of situation where one person tries to rule.”
Until a few albums ago, each of the songs on a Genesis album was attributed to a specific group member or members. The three now share songwriting credits equally, reflecting a creative style typified by their recording sessions for ”Invisible Touch.” The album was recorded at the trio`s jointly-owned studio near Surrey, England, where all three members have homes.
”Generally, we would go into the studio and switch on a drum machine,”
says Banks. ”That`s the easiest way to start. You go in there with no music written at all, but once you get something going, everybody starts
improvising. We have played together for a long time, so we can play off of each other. We do write most of the lyrics individually–they come afterwards, and it`s much easier that way. But we write all of the music together. I don`t think that very many groups do it all together like that, but we find that when we are all in the same room, the songs take on a character of their own.”
Banks, whose favorite Genesis albums include the vintage ”Wind and Wuthering” and ”The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway,” sees ”Invisible Touch”
as striking a better balance between various kinds of songs than Genesis has achieved in the past.
”For me, this one managed to have good short songs and good long songs,” he says. ”In the past–in the early days, particularly–we were known for our longer, more adventurous songs, but we were less good at the short ones. We have gotten better at that–in fact, on the two albums preceding this one, I think that the short songs started to take over slightly. On this album, we`ve got a good balance. And the shorter songs are much better.
”I`ve always felt that our more ambitious pieces have been our better ones,” adds Banks. ”When we give ourselves room to breathe and explore, we come up with something more interesting, because we aren`t so tied to verses and choruses. You can contrast pieces of music, which I personally find more interesting. But I also am fond of short songs, when they work. In the past, sometimes I`ve been less than satisfied with some of our shorter pieces, but I think that we have a lot of good ones on this album.”
With two decades of history behind them, Genesis isn`t about to be
”Throwing It All Away,” as the title of their current hit single puts it, at least for now. But what about the future?
”Well, if someone had told us when we started out 18 or 20 years ago that that we would still be in this group today, we would have said that was silly,” says Banks. ”We just kind of carry on from period to period. There may come a point where we get disillusioned with it in some way; anything can happen. But we see no reason at this stage why we won`t go on and do another album together. We don`t look much further ahead than that.”
HIGHLIGHTS OF GENESIS `66-`86
1966:
British teenagers Peter Gabriel, Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks and Anthony Phillips band together at school to write songs; soon they decide to try for a performing career.
1968:
Calling itself Genesis, band records debut album, ”From Genesis to Revelation,” for the British Decca label.
1970:
Band releases ”Trespass,” featuring lengthy songs and a blend of electric and acoustic formats.
1971:
Phillips leaves the group; remaining members recruit guitarist Steve Hackett and drummer Phil Collins and release a new album, ”Nursery Crime.”
Front man Gabriel adds mime and costumes to the band`s increasingly theatrical stage shows. Band develops cult following among art-rock fans in England and America.
1972:
Genesis releases ”Foxtrot” album, featuring lengthy classic, ”Supper`s Ready”; makes American concert debut.
1973:
”Selling England by the Pound” becomes band`s biggest selling U.S. release up to that time.
1974:
Genesis releases ”The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway,” a memorable two-record concept album about a youth`s surreal adventures in New York.
1975:
Gabriel leaves for solo career; Collins becomes lead vocalist and band`s music moves toward mainstream.
1977:
Band releases double live album, ”Seconds Out,” from 1976-77 world tour; Hackett leaves and is not replaced.
1978:
The appropriately-titled ”And Then There Were Three” becomes Genesis`
first gold record in the U.S.; band has first American Top 30 single with
”Follow You, Follow Me.”
1979:
On break from Genesis, band members pursue individual projects, including solo albums.
1981:
”Abacab” becomes band`s first million-selling album; Collins` solo album, ”Face Value,” yields two Top 20 single hits, ”I Missed Again” and
”In the Air Tonight.”
1982:
Genesis releases ”Three Sides Live” album; workaholic Collins has million-selling solo album with ”Hello, I Must Be Going!”
1985:
With his third solo album, ”No Jacket Required,” Collins becomes major star, giving rise to speculation that he no longer needs Genesis.
1986:
Collins` solo album goes on to sell more than 5 million copies;
Rutherford has a gold record with his ”second band,” Mike & the Mechanics.
(Meanwhile, Gabriel has a hit single with ”Sledgehammer.”) Genesis releases new album, ”Invisible Touch,” which quickly makes the Top 10.
