“In their school they weren’t allowed to own a guitar”: Phil Collins explains the early differences between him and his Genesis bandmates
Phil Collins has been looking back on how he managed to join Genesis as their new drummer, and the early differences he noticed between himself and the rest of the band.
Collins had attended a drama school from the age of 14 where, as he says, he could get away with murder, while the other existing band members – Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, and Mike Rutherford – that he joined in 1970 had all attended the private Charterhouse School in Surrey, UK.
READ MORE: “There was an aspect of claustrophobia”: Steve Hackett explains why he made “the right decision” to leave Genesis
Speaking to Prog about his journey into the lineup, he recalls, “It was just Tony, Peter and Mike. Mike’s always said that when Anthony Phillips, the unsung hero, left because he couldn’t take the stress, they thought that was the end of the band. But they carried on, and thought they could get a better drummer, I believe, than John Mayhew, who was on [second Genesis album] Trespass.
“I didn’t know all this background dynamic; I had just seen their name a lot in the back of Melody Maker. I knew Tony Stratton-Smith, their manager, since I was about 16 and he was managing The Creation.”
He continues, “I went down to the Marquee bar one night to see if he could put in a word for me. He said, ‘Oh, I’d love to, but I’m afraid they’re very fussy, these guys – you will have to audition.’ So I went along and here we are today! Yes, they were public school [an old term for an independent school] boys, and I was from the drama school where you could get away with murder.”
Collins shares, “In their school they weren’t allowed to own a guitar. At mine, I’d bring my records in and we’d play Sgt. Pepper… or Motown or The Byrds’ Younger Than Yesterday. The teacher would say, ‘Are you sure you can hear me talk at the same time as this music is on?’ We’d say, ‘Oh sure…’”
Genesis are releasing their 1974 album The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway in standalone 1-BR Blu-ray Audio for the first time on 28 August. You can pre-order it now via the Genesis website.
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