Biography of Phil Collins
Phil Collins is a famous musician who hasn’t needed anyone’s introduction for a long time. His life and destiny is one endless way up. That is why our today’s hero has been a living legend for millions of connoisseurs of quality music in different parts of our Earth for many years in a row.
Early years, childhood and the family of Phil Collins
Phil Collins was born on January 30, 1951 in the English city of London. At the age of five, his parents gave him a toy drum kit. From that moment on, the long journey of our today’s hero to world recognition and glory began. At first, he beat the rhythm to the beat of the musical accompaniment of various films and television shows. After that, he began to improve his skills, using advice from old books and textbooks.
Phil Collins – legendary musician and actor
At the age of thirteen in the life of Phil Collins, the first truly striking event occurred. One day, which began like many others, he and his friends were invited to take part in the filming of a certain British film. Phil agreed without hesitation. And very soon he appeared in several episodes of the legendary film “A Hard Day’s Evening”, the main characters of which were the musicians of the Beatles.
After that, Phil Collins became interested in music and acting at the same time. However, over time, he nevertheless made the final choice in favor of a musical career.
At the age of eighteen, a young talented drummer signed a contract with the Flaming Youth band, with whom he took part in the recording of their only album. Our today’s hero methodically beat the rhythm on the drum set, and also acted as a backing vocalist.
At rehearsals, the guys worked for several hours a day, but despite this, their first album did not receive much popularity. After the failure of the record, the Flaming Youth members went on a short tour, but soon interrupted their performances and announced their breakup.
After that, Phil Collins again found himself out of show business. But, really, not for long. Already in 1970, he accidentally ran into a newspaper advertisement for a young band called Genesis, which at that moment was looking for a new drummer.
Not counting on much, Phil came to the audition and, to his own surprise, managed to please the other members of the group. He was accepted, and since then his life has changed beyond recognition.
Phil Collins Career with Genesis
In a new group for himself, Phil Collins instantly became an important part of the team. He played drums and often worked as a backing vocalist. Some time later, he also got the opportunity to perform the song “For Absent Friends” on his own. As a permanent member of the group, our today’s hero took part in the recording of twelve Genesis albums. He often went on tour with the group, breaking the deafening applause of the audience everywhere and everywhere.
In 1975, after Peter Gabriel’s departure from the group, Phil Collins was promoted to lead roles in the ensemble. He began to act as the main vocalist. This moment divided the history of Genesis into “before” and “after”. Despite all the fears, after the departure of the former leader, the group did not lose its charm, but rather, on the contrary, it changed and flourished. In the next twelve years, the group, led by Phil Collins, became one of the brightest bands not only on the British but also on the world stage.
Over the years, the group recorded dozens of successful singles and presented the public with many bright albums. Recognized critics already in the eighties called Genesis classics of rock music. Prestigious awards appeared in their collection one after another, and the geography of tours stretched across several continents.
Phil Collins worked not only as a vocalist and drummer, but also as a composer of music and lyrics. For this reason, the contribution of our today’s hero to the success of the group is difficult to overestimate.
Solo career of Phil Collins and other projects
At different stages of the existence of the Genesis group, our today’s hero repeatedly left and returned to his native team. Phil Collins was engaged in solo work, played in the musical group Brand X, with whom he recorded several fairly successful albums, and also often acted in films.
As an actor, he appeared before the audience in four films, the most famous of which were the tapes “Buster”, “Scammers” and “Captain Hook”. In addition, over the years, Phil Collins has recorded five soundtracks for various American films and cartoons. Among his works are songs for the film “Buster”, animated films “Brother Bear” and “Tarzan”. The last of these compositions even brought him an Oscar!
Phil Collins at present
In total, during his career, Phil Collins has managed to win seven Grammy Awards, as well as the American Music Award and some other prestigious awards. His name is included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In addition, our today’s hero is one of three musicians (along with Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson) who managed to sell more than a hundred million records as members of various musical groups, as well as solo artists.
From 2006 to 2011, Phil Collins again performed as part of the Genesis team, but the group was reunited only for some specific performances. In 2011, our today’s hero interrupted his musical career. Currently, the legendary musician leads a quiet measured life.
Phil Collins personal life
There were three marriages in the life of the cult rocker. His first wife was Andrea Bertorelli. As part of this union, their common son Simon was born. One child – daughter Joel – the lovers also decided to adopt. For a while, the family seemed happy. However, at some point, the marriage collapsed due to the constant employment of the musician.
After that, Phil Collins married Jill Tavelman. The woman gave birth to the musician’s daughter Lily Collins, who today has become a famous actress. But this union also suffered the fate of the past marriage.
Phil Collins was married three times, but his personal life failed
The third marriage of the musician with Orianna Zevey also broke up. From this union, Phil Collins has a son. It is noteworthy that as a result of the divorce proceedings, the musician paid his ex-wife almost $ 50 million, which is one of the largest amounts in the history of divorce proceedings.
