Coordinates	19°55′55″N44°03′14″N
name	John Tesh
background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
birth name	John Frank Tesh
born	July 09, 1952
origin	Garden City, New York, United States
instrument	PianoKeyboards
genre	New AgePopContemporary ChristianSmooth Jazz
occupation	ComposerRecording artistRadio hostNews anchorSportscaster
years active	1986–present
associated acts	YanniConnie SelleccaJames Ingram
website	Tesh.com }}

John Frank Tesh (born July 9, 1952) is an American pianist and composer of pop music, as well as a radio host and television presenter. His 10-year-old 'Intelligence for Your Life Radio Show' reaches 14.2 Million listeners/week, and is syndicated by Teshmedia on 400 stations in USA, Canada, and the UK. Tesh has won 6 music Emmys, has 4 gold albums, 2 Grammy nominations, and an Associated Press award for investigative journalism. Tesh has sold over 8 million records. His live concerts have raised more than $20 million for PBS. His NBC Basketball Theme has been hailed as one of the top 3 sports themes of all time. He is also known as the longtime host of the television program ''Entertainment Tonight''. He has previously worked as a sportscaster for the Olympic Games, a news anchor and a reporter.

Biography

Early years

Tesh was born in Garden City, New York, on Long Island, and graduated from Garden City High School in 1970. Playing piano and trumpet from the age of 6, he studied with teachers from The Juilliard School and was named to the New York State Symphonic Orchestra in high school, while also playing the organ in a rock band. Tesh studied communications and music at North Carolina State University. Tesh was expelled from NC State for breaking the honor code. While at NC State, he was initiated into Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. While in the area, Tesh worked as a news anchor at WTVD in Durham, North Carolina. Tesh went to Orlando, Florida, to take a television position at WFTV.

Tesh has been married to actress Connie Sellecca since 1992. They have one daughter together named Prima.

''Entertainment Tonight'' and television career

His television career included a stint as a news anchor and reporter at WSM-TV in Nashville, Tennessee in the 1970s, where he often covered the same stories as Oprah Winfrey, who worked at a competing Nashville station. He shuffled from Nashville to Raleigh, to Orlando, and finally to New York's WCBS-TV, where, at age 23, he was their youngest reporter. He later hosted the television show ''Entertainment Tonight'' from 1986 to 1996.

Tesh also served as a sportscaster for events such as the Tour de France bicycle race from 1983 through 1986 (Tesh has the distinction of being the anchor for the first American broadcast of this event), and gymnastics at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics. He also provided coverage of numerous dog shows from 1995-1999.

Tesh hosted the "One on One with John Tesh" talk show in 1991-92 on NBC daytime, and co-hosted the show ''John & Leeza'' with fellow ''Entertainment Tonight'' personality Leeza Gibbons in the 1990s.

Tesh appeared in "The Icarus Factor," an episode of ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', playing a Klingon warrior.

Radio personality Howard Stern has dubbed Tesh "Blonde Frankenstein" for his height, lean build, and blonde locks.

Musical career

In 1987, Yanni was putting together his first touring band to promote his album ''Out of Silence'', as well as selections from ''Keys to Imagination''. Being good friends, Tesh asked Yanni if he could join the band as keyboardist along with Joyce Imbesi and drummer Charlie Adams, as he'd never been onstage for a live performance, and he needed the experience. Despite already having a full time job with ''Entertainment Tonight'', and the long hours of rehearsal for the band, he did very well, although he did only one tour with Yanni, playing in about 12 shows, including the "1988 Concert Series," before being replaced by Bradley Joseph. Later, Yanni helped Tesh get his first recording contract with Private Music.

In the 1990s, John Tesh was credited with the theme music to ''Bobby's World'', hosted by Howie Mandel, and the ''NBA on NBC'' theme, known as "Roundball Rock." Tesh composed the ''NBA on NBC'' theme after an idea hit him while traveling. In order to recall his idea at a later juncture, Tesh recorded the initial beat on his answering machine, leaving a message for himself. The theme was used for the ''NBA on NBC'' before the network stopped carrying NBA games following the 2001-02 season, though NBC would revive the theme for its basketball coverage during the 2008 Summer Olympics.

In August 1994, John performed at the majestic 250 million year old outdoor Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver, Colorado for his first ''Live at Red Rocks'' concert. The four-time Emmy Award-winning Tesh performed with conductor John Bisharat and the 70-piece Colorado Symphony Orchestra. The concert featured Tesh playing grand piano, Charlie Bisharat playing electric violin, and Everette Harp playing alto saxophone. Also featured were Olympic gold medal-gymnasts Nadia Comaneci (1976) and Bart Conner (1984) performing gymnastic routines specially-choreographed to Tesh's music.

After Tesh left his 10-year job as co-host for ''Entertainment Tonight'' in 1996, he turned to his career as a contemporary keyboardist. This led to him starting ''The John Tesh Radio Show'' in 2003.

In 2008, he put out a piano gospel dance DVD called "Alive: Music & Dance." It combines Tesh's music, big gospel choirs, and hip-hop dance.

''John Tesh Radio Show''

Tesh currently has a nationally-syndicated radio show called the ''John Tesh Radio Show'', which typically airs on Adult Contemporary and Classic Hits radio stations, which plays Teen-oriented Soft rock (music, or music selected by an affiliate station themselves), interspersed with various factoids and other information Tesh considers useful to listeners, often with topics such as health and well-being. These factoids are called "Intelligence for Your Life." It is played on radio stations across the United States and Canada. "This show was created for my wife, (actress Connie Sellecca)," he says. "She's one of those people where, you look at her side of the bed (and see) six issues of Prevention magazine and five months of Oprah magazine . . . (she) never has time to read any of that stuff . . . I feel there's enough entertainment there - nobody needs to know the latest in the trial of Anna Nicole Smith from us, or who the celebrity birthdays are. So I said, ‘Let's just do something that moves people forward in their life, and we'll do the work for them.'" According to Tesh, the show now airs on about 250 stations nationwide, primarily on adult contemporary music stations, but is carried on some classic hits stations as well; select pieces of "Intelligence for Your Life" are broken up and distributed in short form to other radio stations (including talk radio formats) as well, for use on morning shows.

The show was originally syndicated by Westwood One under the name ''On the Air with John Tesh'', albeit with a slightly-different format. It is currently self-syndicated.

Awards

In 2007, Tesh won the Syndicated Personality/Show of the Year award by Radio & Records magazine for his radio show. Other finalists included Delilah, Blair Garner, Steve Harvey, Kidd Kraddick, and The Lia Show. Tesh was nominated in 2003 for the Grammy for "Best Pop Instrumental Album" for ''Power of Love''. John has also earned three gold albums, six Emmys for his sports themes, and a Keyboard Magazine Award.

Discography

(1987) ''Music from the Tour de France, Vol. I'' - Tesh Music BMI

(1988) ''A Thousand Summers''

(1988) ''Tour de France'' - Private Music

(1989) ''Garden City''- Cypress

(1989) ''You Break It'' - Atlantic Records

(1990) ''Tour de France - The Early Years'' - Private Music

(1992) ''A Romantic Christmas'' - Decca Records

(1992) ''Ironman Triathlon'' - GTSP

(1992) ''The Games'' - GTSP

(1993) ''Monterey Nights'' - Decca Records

(1994) ''A Family Christmas'' - Decca Records

(1994) ''Sax by the Fire'' - Decca Records

(1994) ''Winter Song'' - Decca Records

(1995) ''Music in the Key of Love'' - GTSP

(1995) ''Backstage with John Tesh'' - Digital Entertainment

(1995) ''Live at Red Rocks'' - Decca Records

(1995) ''Sax on the Beach'' - Decca Records

(1995) ''Anthology''

(1996) ''Discovery'' - Decca Records

(1996) ''Choirs of Christmas'', featuring Rock Theatre, Paulist Boy Choristers of California, Encore Children's Chorus - GTSP

(1997) ''Avalon'' - Decca Records

(1997) ''Sax All Night'' - Decca Records

(1998) ''Grand Passion'' - Decca Records

(1998) ''Guitar by the Fire'' - Decca Records

(1998) ''Songs from the Road'' - BMG Special Products

(1998) ''Pure Movies'' - GTSP

(1999) ''One World'' - Decca Records

(1999) ''John Tesh & Friends'' - Columbia River

(1999) ''One Day'' - Unison

(2000) ''Pure Movies, Vol. 2'' - Garden City Music

(2000) ''Pure Hymns'' - Faith M.D.

(2001) ''Classical Music for an Intimate Mood'' - Garden City Music

(2001) ''Pure Orchestra'' - Garden City Music

(2001) ''Classical Music for a Stress-Free World'' - Garden City

(2001) ''Pure Gospel'' - Faith M.D.

(2001) ''Classical Music for Babies (And Their Moms), Vol. 1'' - Garden City

(2001) ''Classical Music for Babies (And Their Moms), Vol. 2'' - Garden City

(2001) ''Classical Music for a Prayerful Mood'' - Faith M.D.

(2002) ''The Power of Love'' - Garden City Music

(2002) ''Christmas Worship'' - Word Entertainment

(2002) ''A Deeper Faith'' - Garden City

(2003) ''Worship Collection: Awesome God'' - Garden City Music

(2003) ''A Deeper Faith, Vol. 2'' - Garden City Music

(2004) ''Worship at Red Rocks'' (live) - Garden City Music

''God of Wonders - Word Entertainment

''Drive Time Intelligence CD''

''Grand Piano Christmas''

''Heart of the Sunrise''

''John Tesh - Romantic Christmas Collection''

''John Tesh - Ultimate Christmas Collection''

''The Power of Prayer and Worship''

''Ultimate Love Song Collection''

''Victory''

Videography

''John Tesh - Monterey Nights''

''John Tesh - Live at Red Rocks''

''John Tesh - The Avalon Concert''

''John Tesh - One World''

''John Tesh - Christmas in Positano

''John Tesh - Alive: Music & Dance''

References

External links

Official site

John Tesh's FACEBOOK PAGE

John Tesh at Allmovie

Category:North Carolina State University alumni Category:People from Garden City, New York Category:Living people Category:1952 births Category:American pianists Category:American composers Category:Composers for piano Category:American radio personalities Category:New Age pianists Category:Eagle Scouts Category:American Christians Category:Promise Keepers Category:American television sports announcers Category:American performers of Christian music Category:Cycling announcers

fr:John Tesh

Coordinates	19°55′55″N44°03′14″N
Name	Robert Mirabal
Background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
Origin	Taos Pueblo, New Mexico
Genre	World
Website	http://www.robertmirabal.com/ }}

Robert Mirabal (born 10.06.1966) is a Pueblo musician and Native American flute player and maker from Taos Pueblo, New Mexico.

His flutes are world renowned and have been displayed at the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of the American Indian. An award-winning musician and leading proponent of world music, Mirabal performs worldwide, sharing flute songs, tribal rock, dance, and storytelling.

Mirabal was twice named the Native American Music Awards' Artist of the Year, and received the Songwriter of the Year award three times. He was featured in Grammy Award winning album, ''Sacred Ground: A Tribute to Mother Earth'' in 2006 for Best Native American Music Album

Mirabal also published a book of storytelling poetry and prose in 1994 entitled ''Skeletons of a Bridge'' and is currently writing a second book, ''Running Alone in Photographs''. Aside from his artistic talents, Mirabal is a father and a farmer, living in Taos Pueblo and participating in the traditional ways and rituals of his people.

Musical career

Raised traditionally by his mother and grandparents on the pueblo, and born in 1966, Mirabal spoke Tiwa at home and began making flutes at the age of 19. In school, he had learned how to play clarinet, saxophone, piano, and drums, but found his true musical voice in the traditional Native American flute. He met the renowned Native American flute player R. Carlos Nakai as a young man and was greatly inspired by him.

He moved to New York City, playing in a multicultural band made up of a Senegalese guitarist, a Cape Verdean drummer and Haitian keyboardist. There, Mirabal immersed himself in the sound of hip-hop, funk and R&B;, which would inform his later trademark music.

He recorded an independent debut album in 1988, and went on to land a contract with Warner Western and later, Silver Wave Records. His first projects were generally focused on traditional music consisting of Native American flute and percussion. One of his early albums, entitled ''Land'' was originally composed for two Japanese avant-garde modern dancers Eiko and Koma, who choreographed a dance production inspired by their impressions of the land around Taos. Cedar and clay flutes, percussion, rattles, and traditional vocals were used throughout the album. Reynaldo Lujan, a percussionist who would go on to collaborate with Mirabal for over a decade, played on the album along with Mark Andes. Each song told a different story about the land around Taos Mountain. The acclaimed performance toured Japan, Europe and the U.S. and in 1992, Mirabal was given New York’s Dance and Performance Bessie Award for the score.

In 1996, Mirabal collaborated with Grammy Award-winning Native American singer-songwriter Bill Miller on an album ''Native Suite-Chants: Dances and the Remembered Earth''. The project was both experimental and traditional, featuring flute and percussion as well as Mohican pow-wow singing.

All these disparate interests and experiences led to the band Mirabal in 1995. Bassist Mark Andes, from the '60s band Spirit and '80s rock group Heart, joined Robert along with Reynaldo Lujan. In 1997, they released the groundbreaking album ''Mirabal'' that fused rock, funk, and other contemporary forms of music with traditional music, drawing on the legacy of other Native American pop/rock musicians (such as Buffy Sainte-Marie) but creating a unique sound that would set Mirabal apart and gain further mainstream attention.

Mirabal came to greater national prominence during his performance in PBS' 1998 musical dance production, ''Spirit: A Journey in Dance, Drum, and Song'', for which he composed the soundtrack with traditional flute and percussion. Due to the popularity of the program, the network went on to produce a music/dance program centered entirely on Mirabal and his traditional/rock fusion music in 2002, entitled ''Music from a Painted Cave''. The program and its corresponding CD release were enthusiastically received by mainstream audiences and became a benchmark world music album. He also collaborated with John Tesh for the acclaimed PBS ''One World'' TV special for the millennium in 2000, which showcased music from around the world.

Mirabal's ''In the Blood'' CD (2007) on Star Road Records (www.starroadrecords.com) was featured in New Mexico Magazine for their October 2007 issue. The reviewer wrote that "it is one of his finest to date." His native state's tourism magazine lauded the CD's "lively danceable rhythms (that) should appeal to mainstream radio.... Mirabal (is) one of the trailblazers of tribal rock....

Mirabal was also featured in a ''New Mexico Magazine'' story about Native American flute players.

Discography

''Song Carrier'' (1995)

''Land'' (1995)

''Warrior Magician'' (1996)

''Native Suite'' (1996, with Bill Miller)

''Mirabal'' (1997)

''Native American Lullabies: Under The Green Corn Moon'' (1998)

''Taos Tales'' (1999)

''Music from a Painted Cave'' (2001)

''Indians, Indians'' (2003)

''Sacred Ground: A Tribute to Mother Earth'' (2005, compilation)

''Johnny Whitehorse'' (2005)

''Pueblo Christmas'' (2007, with Patrick Mirabal)

''In the Blood '' (2007)

''Johnny Whitehorse: Totemic Flute Chants'' (2007)

References

External links

Robert Mirabal official site

Robert Mirabal official record label

Category:1966 births Category:Living people Category:Native American flautists Category:Musicians from New Mexico

Coordinates	19°55′55″N44°03′14″N
name	James Ingram
landscape	yes
background	solo_singer
birth date	February 16, 1952
birth place	Akron, Ohio, United States
origin	Los Angeles
instrument	Vocals, piano, keyboards, guitar, bass guitar, drums
genre	Soul, R&B;, crossover jazz
occupation	Singer, songwriter, record producer
years active	1975–present
label	Intering
associated acts	Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, The Coasters, Ingram, Leon Haywood
website	James Ingram's Official Website
notable instruments	}}

James Ingram (born February 16, 1952, Akron, Ohio) is an American soul musician. He is best known as a vocalist. He is also a self-taught musician who plays piano, guitar, bass, drums and keyboards. Additionally, he is a producer and songwriter.

Biography

Early life

He began his career in the 1970s as part of the band Revelation Funk with Bernard Lawson, Sr., also from Akron. During this time, Ingram developed a reputation in the Los Angeles area as a session vocalist, and came to the attention of ex-Motown songwriter and producer Lamont Dozier. Dozier invited Ingram to contribute vocals to some material; one such song, "Love's Calling," garnered some airplay. The remainder of the material surfaced in 1980 on the album ''Zingara''.

Career

In 1981, Ingram provided the vocals to "Just Once" and "One Hundred Ways" on Quincy Jones's album ''The Dude''. He won a Grammy award for best R&B; vocal performance for his work on this album. Ingram's debut album, ''It's Your Night'', appeared in 1983, including the ballad "There's No Easy Way." He also worked with other notable R&B; artists such as Ray Charles, Anita Baker, Viktor Lazlo, Nancy Wilson, Natalie Cole, and Kenny Rogers. In October, 1990, he scored a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the love ballad "I Don't Have the Heart", from his ''It's Real'' album.

But Ingram was best known throughout the decade for his hit collaborations. He went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in Feb. 1983 with Patti Austin on "Baby, Come to Me", a song made popular on TV's ''General Hospital''. A second Austin–Ingram duet, "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?", was featured in the movie ''Best Friends'' and earned an Oscar nomination. A few years later, he won a 1985 Grammy Award for "Yah Mo B There", a duet with Michael McDonald. And he teamed up with Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes for the Top 40 ballad "What About Me?" in 1984. In 1985, he participated in the charity single "We Are the World".

He teamed with American vocalist Linda Ronstadt and had a US Billboard Hot 100 hit which peaked at No. 2 in March, 1987 with "Somewhere Out There", the theme from the animated feature film ''An American Tail''. The song garnered Grammy and Academy Award nominations and was certified gold (over 500,000 U.S. copies sold) by the RIAA.

Ingram performed two solos on the 1985 recording and video of "We Are the World". He also co-wrote "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" which was recorded by Michael Jackson on his blockbuster ''Thriller''.

In the 1990s, his highest-profile team-up came again with Quincy Jones, on the song "The Secret Garden". This song also featured vocals by Barry White, El Debarge and Al B. Sure!

Soundtrack songs were popular for Ingram in the 1990s. From the movie ''Sarafina!'' came "One More Time", and from ''City Slickers'' came "Where Did My Heart Go?" His 1994 composition "The Day I Fall in Love", which he dueted with Dolly Parton, was the theme song for the movie ''Beethoven's 2nd'' and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song.

During the summer of 2004, Ingram participated in the U.S. television reality show ''Celebrity Duets'' as a duet partner. The show combined professional vocalists, of different musical genre, with entertainers of different backgrounds in a weekly elimination competition. In 2006, he and neo-soul singer Angie Stone teamed up on "My People".

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album	Chart positions				U.S.certifications	Record label
		! width="40"	! width="40"	! width="40"	! width="40"
1983		46	10	—	25	Gold	Qwest Records	Qwest/Warner Bros.
1986		123	37	—	72	—
1989	align="left"	117	44	—	—	—
1993		—	74	—	—	—
2008		—	63	18	—	—

Compilation albums

Year	Album	Chart positions		U.S.certifications	Record label
		! width="40"	! width="40"
1991		168	—	Gold	Qwest Records	Qwest/Warner Bros.
1999		165	94	—

Singles

Year	Single	Chart positions				Album
		! width="40"	! width="40"	! width="40"	! width="40"
		17	11	7	—	align="left" rowspan="2"
	14	10	5	—
		73	37	—	11
	1	9	1	—
		45	6	5	—
	101	21	—	—
align="left"	19	5	10	12
		58	14	7	—
	—	59	19	—
align="left"	15	57	1	92	align="left" rowspan="1"
		—	—	—	25
	align="left"	—	27	—	—
	—	—	13	—
	—	86	—	—
align="left"	2	—	4	8
		—	66	40	—
		—	8	—	83
	—	18	—	—
align="left"	—	30	—	—
		31	1	26	67
	1	53	2	—
	—	81	29	—
		—	—	23	—
	—	59	—	—
		—	—	34	—
		—	—	36	64
	—	—	—	—
		111	71	39	—
		66	—	5	—
		—	—	12	—

References

External links

James Ingram – official website.

James Ingram's blog on WordPress.

Category:1952 births Category:Living people Category:Grammy Award winners Category:African American singers Category:African American singer-songwriters Category:American male singers Category:Qwest Records artists Category:People from Akron, Ohio

az:James Ingram de:James Ingram es:James Ingram fr:James Ingram ko:제임스 잉그램 it:James Ingram nl:James Ingram ja:ジェームス・イングラム no:James Ingram pl:James Ingram pt:James Ingram sv:James Ingram tl:James Ingram tr:James Ingram

Coordinates	19°55′55″N44°03′14″N
name	Phil Collins
landscape	yes
background	solo_singer
birth name	Philip David Charles Collins
birth date	January 30, 1951
birth place	London, England, UK
instrument	Drums, vocals, piano, guitar, keyboards, percussion
genre	Progressive rock, rock, pop,jazz fusion, R&B;
occupation	Singer-songwriter, musician, actor
years active	1968–2011
label	Virgin, Atlantic
associated acts	Genesis, Brand X, Flaming Youth, Philip Bailey, Eric Clapton, The Phil Collins Big Band, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony
website	}}

Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO (born 30 January 1951) is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for English progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist.

Collins sang the lead vocals on several chart hits in the United Kingdom and the United States between 1978 and 1994, either as a solo artist or with Genesis. His singles, often dealing with lost love, ranged from the drum-heavy "In the Air Tonight", dance pop of "Sussudio", piano-driven "Against All Odds", to the political statements of "Another Day in Paradise".

Collins's professional music career began as a drummer, first with Flaming Youth and then more famously with Genesis. In Genesis, Collins originally supplied backing vocals for front man Peter Gabriel, singing lead on only two songs: "For Absent Friends" from 1971's ''Nursery Cryme'' album and "More Fool Me" from ''Selling England by the Pound'', which was released in 1973. Following Gabriel's departure in 1975, Collins became the group's lead singer.

His solo career, heavily influenced by his personal life, brought both him and Genesis commercial success. According to Atlantic Records, Collins's total worldwide sales as a solo artist, as of 2000, were 150 million. He has won seven Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and two Golden Globes for his solo work. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Genesis in 2010.

Collins is one of only three recording artists (along with Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson) who have sold over 100 million albums worldwide both as solo artists and (separately) as principal members of a band. When his work with Genesis, his work with other artists, as well as his solo career is totalled, Collins had more top 40 hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart during the 1980s than any other artist. In 2008, Collins was ranked the 22nd most successful artist on the "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists".

Early life

Collins was born in Chiswick, London, England, the son of June, a theatrical agent, and Greville Collins, an insurance agent. He was given a toy drum kit for Christmas when he was five. Later, his uncle made him a makeshift one that he used regularly. As Collins grew older these were followed by more complete sets bought by his parents. He practiced by playing alongside the television and radio, and never learned to read and write conventional musical notation; instead, he uses a system he devised himself.

Early career

His professional training began at fourteen when he entered Barbara Speake Stage School. He began a career as a child actor and model, and won his first major role as The Artful Dodger in the London production of ''Oliver!''. He was an extra in The Beatles' ''A Hard Day's Night'', one of hundreds of screaming teenagers during the TV concert sequence and seen fleetingly in a close-up. He was also in ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'' as one of the children who storms the castle at the end of the movie, but it was cut. He also auditioned for the role of Romeo in ''Romeo and Juliet'' (1968), a role won by fellow Artful Dodger actor, Leonard Whiting. Collins was among the last three finalists for the role of I.Q. on the American children's television show ''The Bugaloos'' (he lost out to English actor/musician John McIndoe).

Despite the beginnings of an acting career, Collins continued to gravitate towards music. While attending Chiswick Community School he formed a band called The Real Thing and later joined The Freehold. With the latter group, he wrote his first song titled "Lying Crying Dying".

Collins's first record deal came as drummer for Flaming Youth who released a single album, ''Ark 2'' (1969). A concept album inspired by the recent media attention surrounding the moon landing, ''Ark 2'' (with Ronnie Caryl, Brian Chatton and Gordon (Flash) Smith), failed to make much commercial success despite positive critical reviews. ''Melody Maker'' featured the album as "Pop Album of the Month", describing it as "adult music beautifully played with nice tight harmonies". The album's main single, "From Now On", failed on the radio. After a year of touring, band tensions and the lack of commercial success dissolved the group. In 1970, the 19-year old Collins played percussion on the George Harrison song "The Art of Dying". Harrison credited him in the liner notes to the remastered CD version of the album released in 2000.

Genesis era

In 1970, Collins answered a ''Melody Maker'' classified ad for "...a drummer sensitive to acoustic music, and acoustic twelve-string guitarist". Genesis placed the ad after having already lost three drummers over two albums. The audition occurred at the home of Peter Gabriel's parents. Prospective candidates performed tracks from the group's second album, ''Trespass'' (1970). Collins arrived early, listened to the other auditions while swimming in Gabriel's parents' pool, and memorised the pieces before his turn.

Collins won the audition. ''Nursery Cryme'' was released a year later. Although his role remained primarily that of drummer and backing vocalist for the next five years, he twice sang lead vocals: once on "For Absent Friends" (from ''Nursery Cryme'') and once on "More Fool Me" (from ''Selling England by the Pound'').

In 1974, while Genesis were recording the concept album ''The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway'', Brian Eno (who is credited with "Enossification" for electronic vocal effects on the track "Grand Parade of Lifeless Packaging") needed a drummer for his album ''Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy)''. Collins was sent to fill the gap, and played drums in lieu of payment for Eno's work with the band.

In 1975, following the final tour supporting the album ''The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway'', Gabriel left the group to pursue a solo career. Collins became lead vocalist after a lengthy but ultimately fruitless search for Gabriel's replacement (where he sang back up with the over 400 hopefuls that reportedly auditioned). In the short term, the group recruited former Yes and King Crimson drummer Bill Bruford to play drums during live shows, although Collins continued to play during longer instrumental sections. Bruford's drumming can be heard on the track "The Cinema Show" on the live album ''Seconds Out''. He was soon replaced by ex-Frank Zappa band member Chester Thompson, who became a mainstay of the band's live line-up. Collins, however, continued to play drums on all of the band's studio recordings.

The first album with Collins as lead vocalist, 1976's ''A Trick of the Tail'', reached the American Top 40, and peaked high as #3 on the UK charts. Said ''Rolling Stone'', "Genesis has managed to turn the possible catastrophe of Gabriel's departure into their first broad-based American success." Following the recording of Genesis's next album ''Wind and Wuthering'' guitarist Steve Hackett left the group to pursue his own solo career. The group decided to continue as a trio for recording with Mike Rutherford playing guitar and bass in the studio, although the lineup was regularly augmented by Chester Thompson and American guitarist Daryl Stuermer for concert tours.

Collins simultaneously performed in a jazz fusion group called Brand X. The band recorded their first album, ''Unorthodox Behaviour'', with Collins as drummer, but because Genesis was Collins's priority, there were several Brand X tours and albums without him. Collins credits Brand X as his first use of a drum machine as well as his first use of a home 8-track tape machine.

Collins also performed on Steve Hackett's first solo album, ''Voyage of the Acolyte'', on which he sang lead vocals and played drums.

As the decade closed, Genesis began a shift from their progressive rock roots and toward more accessible, radio-friendly pop-rock music. The album ''...And Then There Were Three...'' featured their first UK Top 10 and U.S. Top 40 single, "Follow You Follow Me".

In the 1980s, while Collins developed as a songwriter and established a parallel career as a solo artist, Genesis recorded a series of highly successful albums including ''Duke'', ''Abacab'', ''Genesis'', and ''Invisible Touch''. The latter album's title track reached #1 on the American ''Billboard'' singles chart, the only Genesis song to do so. The group received an MTV "Video of the Year" nomination in 1987 for the single "Land of Confusion" (which featured puppet caricatures created by the British satirical team ''Spitting Image'') but lost out to Peter Gabriel's solo hit, "Sledgehammer". Reviews were generally positive, with ''Rolling Stone'''s J. D. Considine stating, "every tune is carefully pruned so that each flourish delivers not an instrumental epiphany but a solid hook."

Collins left Genesis in 1996 to focus on his solo career. The last studio album with him as the lead singer was 1991's ''We Can't Dance''. He and Gabriel reunited with other Genesis members in 1999 to re-record "The Carpet Crawlers" for Genesis's ''Turn It on Again: The Hits''. When in the mid-2000s discussions of a possible Genesis reunion arose, Collins stated that he would prefer to return as the drummer, with Gabriel handling the vocals. Eventually Turn It On Again: The Tour was announced for 2007, with the Collins/Rutherford/Banks lineup.

In March 2010, Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio was asked to pay tribute to Genesis, one of his favourite bands, upon being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In addition to Anastasio's speech, Phish appeared and performed two Genesis songs, "Watcher of the Skies" and "No Reply At All". Collins and his Genesis bandmates (minus Peter Gabriel) attended the ceremony but they did not perform.

Solo career

Early solo recordings (1981–1983)

The dominant theme running through Collins's early solo recordings (although never specifically mentioned in his songs) was the acrimonious breakdown of his first marriage and then-recent divorce. Two songs he wrote on the Genesis album ''Duke'', "Please Don't Ask", and the Top 20 hit "Misunderstanding", dealt with failed relationships. One year earlier, he had played drums and sung backing vocals on John Martyn's ''Grace and Danger'', an album whose main theme is also marriage break-up. With the recording of his first solo album, ''Face Value'', Collins attributed his divorce as his main influence, as can be inferred from songs such as "If Leaving Me Is Easy". Collins made his live debut as a solo performer, appearing at the invitation of producer Martin Lewis at the Amnesty International benefit show, ''The Policeman's Other Ball'' at the Theatre Royal in London in September 1981, performing two songs from ''Face Value'' including "In the Air Tonight" and "The Roof is Leaking" accompanying himself on piano. ''Face Value'' became a surprise international success topping the charts in at least seven countries and hitting the top ten of the Billboard 200 eventually going triple-platinum in the U.S. Hits from the album included "In the Air Tonight", "I Missed Again" and "If Leaving Me Is Easy". In 1982, he produced ABBA member Frida's solo album, ''Something's Going On'', which helped to spawn the title track, "I Know There's Something Going On", which became a hit.

Much like ''Face Value'', many of the songs from Collins's 1982 follow-up album, ''Hello, I Must Be Going!'', came from Collins's marital problems with his first wife such as "I Don't Care Anymore" and "Do You Know and Do You Care". Collins’s early albums had a dark presence, usually heavy on the drums. Regarding ''Face Value'', he says, "I had a wife, two children, two dogs, and the next day I didn't have anything. So a lot of these songs were written because I was going through these emotional changes." There were occasional poppier influences–''Face Value'''s "Behind the Lines", for example, was a jazzy remake of a Genesis song he co-wrote. ''Face Value'' was a critical and multi-platinum success, and saw Collins’s profile increase further. ''Hello, I Must Be Going!'' gave him a UK #1 for his cover of The Supremes' "You Can't Hurry Love". The album went triple-platinum in the United States, like its predecessor. The Supremes' cover was his first Top 10 U.S. hit (it also hit the Top 10 of Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart). The album also reached #2 on the UK album chart, spending well over a year there.

Two years before, Collins had played drums on Peter Gabriel's third self-titled record (often referred to as ''Melt''), the first record to feature the "gated reverb" sound, which was used on the song "Intruder". Gabriel reportedly "didn't want any metal on the record" and asked Collins to leave his cymbals at home, to concentrate on the sound of his kit more heavily than usual. Studio engineer Hugh Padgham augmented the drum sound by using a microphone normally intended for studio communication rather than recording and feeding it through a signal processor called a noise gate. This allowed the reverberation added to the drums to be suddenly cut off before it naturally decayed. The result was the arresting "gated reverb" which became Collins signature sound. This was the same 'big drum sound' used on such songs as "In The Air Tonight", "Mama" by Genesis, and Frida's "There's Something Going On".

Superstardom (1984–1992)

Collins changed his musical style with the release of the ballad, "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)", which was the theme song to the movie of the same name in 1984. The more pop-friendly and radio-accessible single became Collins's first solo single to reach number-one on the Billboard Hot 100. Later that year, Collins contributed to production on Earth, Wind & Fire singer Phillip Bailey's debut album, ''''Chinese Wall'''', collaborating with Bailey on the hit duet, "Easy Lover". Collins featured on Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas", he played drums and sang on the song. Collins released his most successful album, ''No Jacket Required'', in early 1985. It contained the hits "Sussudio", "One More Night", "Don't Lose My Number", and "Take Me Home", as well as the less known yet equally robust "Who Said I Would", and "Only You Know and I Know". The album featured Sting, Helen Terry and ex-bandmate Peter Gabriel as backing vocalists. He also recorded the successful song "Separate Lives", a duet with Marilyn Martin, and an American number one, for the movie ''White Nights''. Collins had three American number one songs in 1985, the most by any artist that year. ''No Jacket Required'' went on to win several Grammy awards including Album of the Year.

''No Jacket Required'' received criticism that the album was too safe, despite its upbeat reviews and commercial success. A positive review by David Fricke of ''Rolling Stone'' ended, "After years on the art-rock fringe, Collins has established himself firmly in the middle of the road. Perhaps he should consider testing himself and his new fans' expectations next time around." "Sussudio" also drew criticism for sounding too similar to Prince's "1999", a charge that Collins did not deny. Nevertheless, the album went straight to #1 in the U.S. and UK. In 1985, Collins was invited by Bob Geldof to perform at the Live Aid charity event. Collins had the distinction of being the only performer to appear at both the UK concert at Wembley Stadium and the US concert at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. He accomplished this by performing early in the day at Wembley as both a solo artist and alongside Sting, then transferring to a Concorde flight to the USA enabling him to perform his solo material, and drum for Led Zeppelin and Eric Clapton in Philadelphia. While being a guest on major artists' hit recordings, Collins continued to enjoy solo success even while on tour with Genesis, besides from his number-one duet with Marilyn Martin in 1986, Collins would score two more hits from movies with the singles, "Two Hearts" (1988) and "Groovy Kind of Love" (1988), the latter two from the soundtrack of his feature film, ''Buster''.

In 1989, Collins produced another successful album, ''...But Seriously'', featuring the anti-homelessness anthem "Another Day in Paradise", with David Crosby on backing vocals. (Collins later went on to co-write, sing and play on the song "Hero" on Crosby's 1993 album ''Thousand Roads''.) "Another Day in Paradise" went to Number 1 on the Billboard Charts at the end of 1989 and won Collins a Grammy for Record of the Year (1990). In the process, it became the last #1 US pop hit of the 1980s. The album ''...But Seriously'' became the first #1 US album of the 1990s. Other songs included "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven" (#4 US, #15 UK), "Do You Remember?" (not released in the UK, but a #4 hit in the US), and "I Wish It Would Rain Down" (the latter featuring Clapton on guitar) (#3 US, #7 UK). Songs about apartheid and homelessness demonstrated Collins’s turn to politically-driven material. This theme recurred on his later albums. A live album, ''Serious Hits... Live!'', followed.

Later solo work and Genesis reunion (1993–2008)

Collins's record sales began to drop with the 1993 release of ''Both Sides'', a largely experimental album that, according to Collins, included songs that "were becoming so personal, so private, I didn't want anyone else's input". Featuring a less polished sound and fewer up-tempo songs than his previous albums, ''Both Sides'' was a significant departure. Collins used no backing musicians, performed all the vocal and instrumental parts at his home studio, and used rough vocal takes for the final product. The album was not well received by radio. Its two biggest hits were "Both Sides of the Story" and "Everyday". Collins worked on the album completely independently of his record company, and took them by surprise when he delivered them a completed album that they were unaware he was making.

Collins officially parted ways with Genesis in 1996 to focus on his solo career (Genesis would produce one album without Collins—''...Calling All Stations...''—before going on hiatus). Collins attempted a return to pop music with ''Dance into the Light'', which ''Entertainment Weekly'' reviewed by saying that "(e)ven Phil Collins must know that we all grew weary of Phil Collins". It included minor hits such as the title track and The Beatles-inspired "It's in Your Eyes". Although the album went Gold in the US, it sold considerably less than his previous albums. Despite this, the subsequent tour regularly sold out arenas.

In 1996, Collins formed The Phil Collins Big Band. With Collins as drummer, the band performed jazz renditions of various Collins and Genesis hits. The Phil Collins Big Band did a world tour in 1998 that included a performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival. In 1999, the group released the CD ''A Hot Night in Paris'' including big band versions of "Invisible Touch", "Sussudio", and the more obscure "The Los Endos Suite" from ''A Trick of the Tail''. A compilation album ''...Hits'' was released in 1998 and sold very well, returning Collins to multi-platinum status in America. The album's sole new track, a cover of the Cyndi Lauper hit "True Colors", received considerable play on US Adult Contemporary stations while peaking at #2. Some of Collins's earlier hits (e.g. "I Missed Again", "If Leaving Me Is Easy", etc.) and other successes were not included in this compilation.

Collins's next single, "You'll Be in My Heart", from the Disney animated movie ''Tarzan'', spent 19 weeks at #1 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart – the longest time ever up to that point. The song won Collins an Academy Award for Best Song. It was his third nomination in the songwriters category, after being nominated in 1985 and 1989. Collins was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on 16 June 1999.

In 2002 Collins released ''Testify''. Metacritic's roundup of album reviews found this record to be the worst-reviewed album at the time of its release, though it has since been "surpassed" by three more recent releases. The album's "Can't Stop Loving You" (a Leo Sayer cover) was yet another #1 Adult Contemporary smash hit for Collins. ''Testify'' sold 140,000 copies in the United States by year's end, although a successful worldwide tour followed.

That same year Collins accepted an invitation to drum for the "house band" at a concert celebrating Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. In 2003 announced his last solo tour – the "First Final Farewell Tour", a tongue-in-cheek reference to the multiple farewell tours of other popular artists. In 2006 he worked with Disney on a Broadway production of ''Tarzan'', a musical which received generally mixed reviews. In 2007 Collins reunited with his Genesis bandmates Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford for Turn It On Again: The Tour, a tour of Europe and North America. During the tour Genesis performed at the Live Earth concert at Wembley Stadium. Following the band's performance, presenter Jonathan Ross had to apologise to viewers watching the televised version as Collins had used a swear word while singing "Invisible Touch".

''Going Back'' and retirement (2009–2011)

In October 2009, it was reported that Collins was to record a Motown covers album. He told a German newspaper, "I want the songs to sound exactly like the originals", and that the album would feature up to 30 songs. In January 2010, Chester Thompson said that the album had been completed and would be released some time soon. He also revealed that Collins managed to play the drums on the album despite the adverse effects of his recent spinal operation. It was the first solo album Collins had recorded which consisted entirely of songs written by other people.

''Going Back'' was released on 13 September 2010, entering the UK charts at number 4, rising to number one the following week. In early summer 2010, Collins played six concerts entirely dedicated to the music from ''Going Back''. These included a special programme, ''Phil Collins: One Night Only'', which was broadcast on ITV1 on 18 September 2010.

As of January 2011, Collins has spent 1,730 weeks in German music charts – 766 weeks of them with Genesis albums and singles and 964 weeks with solo releases.

Citing health problems and other concerns, Collins announced on 4 March 2011 that he was taking time off from his career, prompting widespread reports of his retirement. Days later, on 7 March, his UK representative told the press, "He is not, has no intention of, retiring." However, later that day, Collins posted a message to his fans on his own website, confirming his intention to retire in order to focus on his family life.

Drums and other equipment

Phil Collins uses Gretsch drums and Sabian cymbals. Drums (all single headed concert toms except for the snare): 20" Bass Drum, 18" Floor Tom, 16" Floor Tom, 15" Mounted Tom, 12" Tom, 10" Tom, 8" Tom, 14"x4" Snare, 14" Phil Collins Special.

Cymbals: HH Medium Crash 20" – HH Extra Thin Crash 17" – Hi-Hats 15" – HH China 20" – HH Medium-Thin Crash 16" -HH China 22" – HH Raw Bell Dry Ride 21".

Until 1986, Collins played Paiste and Zildjian cymbals. Other drums he's used over the years are Premier, Noble & Cooley, Pearl, Simmons and Ludwig drums. He uses a Ludwig Speed King pedal and Pro Mark sticks.

Other instruments which have become synonymous with Collins's sound (particularly in his post-1978 Genesis and subsequent solo career) include the Roland CR-78 and Roland TR-808 drum machines, Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 synthesizer, and the Yamaha CP-70 electric grand piano.

Films, theatre and television

The majority of Collins's film work has been through music. Four of his seven American number one songs came from film soundtracks, and his work on Disney's ''Tarzan'' earned him an Oscar. Collins even sang German, Italian, Spanish and French versions of the Tarzan soundtrack for the respective film versions. Collins's acting career has been brief. As a child, he appeared in three films, although two of the films were for brief moments as an extra. Besides the aforementioned ''A Hard Day's Night'' (1964), Collins's first lead role was in a children's film ''Calamity the Cow'' (1967).

Collins wrote and performed the title song to ''Against All Odds'' in 1984. The song became the first of his seven American number one songs and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Song. Collins was not invited to perform the song at that year's presentation, although he was in the audience as the song's composer. Collins had arranged his U.S. tour to accommodate the possibility of appearing on the telecast in the event his song was nominated for an Oscar. It is believed that the producers of that year's Academy Awards show were not aware of his prominence as a musical performer. A note to Collins's label from telecast co-producer Larry Gelbart explaining the lack of invitation stated, "Thank you for your note regarding ''Phil Cooper'' (emphasis added). I'm afraid the spots have already been filled". Collins instead watched Ann Reinking perform his song. For a long time afterwards, he would introduce his performance of "Against All Odds" at his concerts by saying: "Miss Ann Reinking's not here tonight, so I guess I'll have to sing my own song".

As a vocalist, Collins sang Stephen Bishop's composition "Separate Lives" for the film ''White Nights'' (1985) as a duet with Marilyn Martin. The single of the recording became another number one hit for Collins. The song itself was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song (a category that honours the composer, not the vocalists). Bishop's song had parallels to some of the songs on Collins's first two albums. Writer Stephen Bishop noted that he was inspired by a failed relationship and called "Separate Lives" "a song about anger". When the song was being nominated for an Academy Award, in interviews about the original snub by the Academy for "Against All Odds", Collins would jokingly say "the hell with him – I'm going up too," referring to if Bishop's song were to win the award.

Collins's first film role since becoming a musician came in 1988 with ''Buster'' about the Great Train Robbery, which took place in England in the 1960s. The movie received good reviews and Collins contributed four songs to the film's soundtrack. His rendition of "Groovy Kind of Love", originally a 1966 single by The Mindbenders, with lyrics by Toni Wine and music by Carole Bayer Sager, but with the melody of the Rondo section of Muzio Clementi's "Sonatina in G major", op. 36 no. 5 reached number one. The film also spawned the hit single "Two Hearts", which he wrote in collaboration with legendary Motown songwriter Lamont Dozier; the two artists would go on to win a Golden Globe for Best Original Song and receive an Oscar nomination in the same category, the second such honour for Collins; "Big Noise", written by Phil Collins and Lamont Dozier, which included Collins on vocals (although the song was not released as a single, an instrumental version of this song appeared as the B-side to the single version of "A Groovy Kind Of Love".) The final song, "Loco In Acapulco", was another collaboration between him and Dozier, with the vocals performed by the legendary Motown group The Four Tops. Movie critic Roger Ebert said the role of Buster was "played with surprising effectiveness" by Collins, although the film's soundtrack proved more successful than the movie did.

Collins had cameo appearances in Steven Spielberg's ''Hook'' (1991) and the AIDS docudrama ''And the Band Played On'' (1993). He starred in 1993's ''Frauds'', which competed for the Palme d'Or at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. He supplied voices to two animated features: Amblin's ''Balto'' (1995) and Disney's ''The Jungle Book 2'' (2003). A long-discussed but never completed project was a movie titled ''The Three Bears''; originally meant to star him alongside Danny DeVito and Bob Hoskins, he often mentioned the film, though an appropriate script never materialised.

Collins performed the soundtrack to the animated film ''Tarzan'' (1999) for The Walt Disney Company. Collins won an Academy Award for "You'll Be in My Heart", which he performed at that year's telecast as well as during a Disney-themed Super Bowl halftime show. The song, which he also recorded in Spanish among other languages, became his only appearance on Billboard's Hot Latin Tracks. Disney hired him, along with Tina Turner, in 2003 for the soundtrack to another animated feature film, ''Brother Bear'', and had some airplay with the song "Look Through My Eyes".

On television, he twice hosted the ''Billboard Music Awards''. He also appeared in an episode of the series ''Miami Vice'', entitled "Phil the Shill", in which he plays a cheating con-man. He also guest starred in several sketches with ''The Two Ronnies''. Most recently, he had a cameo appearance on the television series ''Whoopi''.

In 2001, Collins was sought out by the satirist Chris Morris, and appeared in the Brass Eye 'Paedophile Special' endorsing a spoof charity called 'Nonce Sense'. At one point Collins, dressed in a matching baseball cap and t-shirt emblazoned with the name of this fictitious charity, stares into the camera and declares: "I'm talking Nonce-sense."

In 2005, Collins's work on ''Brother Bear'' was expanded as Disney used the song "Welcome" as the theme for Walt Disney's Parade of Dreams, the main parade celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Disneyland.

In 2006 Disney's ''Tarzan'' was adapted for Broadway. Collins contributed 11 new songs and instrumental pieces, and was deeply involved in the production. Unlike the movie, where Collins sang all the material, the characters sang on stage.

Collins made an appearance as himself in the 2006 PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 2 video game ''Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories'', set in 1984. Joseph Martignette, also a left-handed drummer, plays the role of Phil Collins in the game. He appears in three missions in which the main character must save him from a gang that is trying to kill him, the final mission occurring during his concert, where the player must defend the scaffolding against saboteurs while Phil is simultaneously performing "In The Air Tonight." After this, the player is given the opportunity to watch this performance of 'In the Air Tonight.' "In The Air Tonight" was also featured in the soundtrack of ''Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories'' and it was also featured in the movie ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters'', the 2009 movie ''The Hangover'' and the 2007 ''Gorilla'' commercial for Cadbury's Dairy Milk chocolate. The advertisement also helped the song re-enter the New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart at number three in July 2008, the following week reaching number one, beating its original 1981 #6 peak. Phil Collins had several ties to the hit show ''Miami Vice'' with 5 songs used in the course of the series as well as having starred in the episode "Phil The Shill."

Phil Collins was portrayed in the hit cartoon ''South Park'' in the episode "Timmy 2000" holding his Oscar throughout, referring to his 1999 win for "You'll Be In My Heart", which defeated "Blame Canada" from South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. He was seen again in the episode "Cartman's Silly Hate Crime".

Phil Collins appears briefly in the Finnish animated sitcom ''Pasila'' in the episode "Phil Collins Hangover". The music of this episode is a pastiche of Phil Collins' "Another Day In Paradise".

Personal life

Family

Collins has been married three times. He married Canadian Andrea Bertorelli in 1975. They met as students in a drama class in London. They had a son, Simon Collins, and Collins adopted Bertorelli's daughter Joely Collins, a Canadian actress. They divorced in 1980, after she started an affair with their painter and decorator. Collins later appeared on the BBC's ''Top of the Pops'' singing his 1981 solo hit "In The Air Tonight" with a pot of paint and brush positioned near his piano. Collins has since claimed that the presence of the paint and brush was coincidental.

Collins met his second wife, Jill Tavelman, in 1980. They were married from 1984 to 1996. They had one daughter, Lily Collins, born in 1989. Collins openly admits that some of their divorce-related correspondence was by fax (one, about access to their daughter, was reproduced in ''The Sun''), but denies that this took her by surprise. Collins paid Jill £17M as final settlement.

Collins married his third wife, Orianne Cevey, in 1999 after a five year romance. They have two sons, Nicholas and Matthew. They bought Sir Jackie Stewart's former house located in Begnins, Switzerland, overlooking Lake Geneva. Announcing their separation on 16 March 2006, they were divorced in January 2007. Collins reportedly paid Cevey £25M in settlement. Collins has said he will continue to live in Switzerland to be near the children. He is currently residing in Féchy, while also maintaining homes in New York City and Dersingham, England. In 2008, Collins was quoted in ''People Magazine'': "Marriage is a difficult proposition. But I haven't given up on it, either."

Fortune

Collins was estimated to have a fortune of £115 million in the ''Sunday Times Rich List'' of 2011, making him one of the 20 richest people in the British music industry.

Court case

On 29 March 2000, Phil Collins launched a case against two former musicians from his band to recoup $780,000 (£500,000) in royalties that were overpaid. Louis Satterfield, 62, and Rahmlee Davis, 51, claimed their contract entitled them to 0.5 per cent of the royalties from ''Serious Hits... Live!'', a live album recorded during Collins's Seriously, Live! World Tour tour in 1990. Their claim was they were an integral part of the whole album, but Collins responded the two should only receive royalties from the five tracks in which they were involved. Instead of asking for a return of what Collins considered overpayment, he sought to recoup the funds by withholding future royalties to Satterfield and Davis, which amounted to less than an annual sum of $20,000 (£12,500) each.

On 19 April 2000, the British High Court ruled that the two musicians would receive no more royalty money from Phil Collins. The amount that Collins was seeking was halved, and Satterfield and Davis (who originally brought the suit forward in California) would not have to repay any of it. The judge agreed with Collins's argument that Satterfield and Davis should have been paid for only the five tracks on which they performed, including the hit "Sussudio".

Health problems

Collins reported losing his hearing in his right ear in 2000 due to a viral infection. In September 2009, it was reported that Collins could no longer play drums, due to a recent operation to repair dislocated vertebrae in his neck. A statement from Collins on the Genesis band website said, "There isn't any drama regarding my 'disability' and playing drums. Somehow during the last Genesis tour I dislocated some vertebrae in my upper neck and that affected my hands. After a successful operation on my neck, my hands still can't function normally. Maybe in a year or so it will change, but for now it is impossible for me to play drums or piano. I am not in any 'distressed' state; stuff happens in life."

Activism

Collins was appointed a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order in 1994 in recognition of his work on behalf of the Prince's Trust.

Collins has stated he is a supporter of animal rights and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). In 2005, he donated an autographed drumstick in support of PETA's campaign against Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Collins also has a lifelong interest in the Alamo. He has collected hundreds of artefacts related to the famous 1836 battle in San Antonio, Texas, narrated a light and sound show about the Alamo, and spoken at related events.

Collins has often been mentioned erroneously in the British media as being a supporter of the Conservative Party and an opponent of the Labour Party. Shortly before the 2005 election (when Collins was living in Switzerland), Noel Gallagher is reported as saying: "Vote Labour. If you don't and the Tories get in, Phil is threatening to come back." However, Collins has since stated that although he did once claim many years earlier that he might leave Britain if most of his income was taken in tax, which was Labour Party policy at that time for top earners, he has never been a Conservative Party supporter and he left Britain for Switzerland in 1994 purely because he met a woman who lived there. He said of Gallagher: “I don’t care if he likes my music or not. I do care if he starts telling people I’m a wanker because of my politics. It’s an opinion based on an old misunderstood quote.” Despite his claim that he did not leave Britain for tax purposes, he was one of several super-rich figures living in tax havens who were singled out for criticism in a report by the charity Christian Aid in 2008. Questioned about his politics by Mark Lawson in an interview broadcast in 2009, Collins said: "My father was Conservative but it wasn't quite the same, I don't think, when he was alive. Politics never loomed large in our family anyway. I think the politics of the country were very different then."

Collins founded the Little Dreams Foundation in February 2000, which aims to "realise the dreams of children in the fields of sports and art" by providing future prodigies aged 4 to 16 years with financial, material, and mentoring support with the help of experts in various fields.

Collins supports the South African charity The Topsy Foundation, which provides relief services to some of South Africa's most under-resourced rural communities through a multi-faceted approach to the consequences of HIV and AIDS and extreme poverty. He donates all royalties earned in South Africa to the organization.

Collins is a patron of the charity Children in Hunger, a small UK based charity working to combat child poverty in Brazil.

Discography

Studio albums

{|class="wikitable" |- ! Release date ! Title |- | 1981 | ''Face Value'' |- | 1982 | ''Hello, I Must Be Going!'' |- | 1985 | ''No Jacket Required'' |- | 1989 | ''...But Seriously'' |- | 1993 | ''Both Sides'' |- | 1996 | ''Dance into the Light'' |- | 2002 | ''Testify'' |- | 2010 | ''Going Back'' |}

Number one singles

"In the Air Tonight" re-entered the New Zealand charts in 2008 at #3 and then peaked at #1, after featuring in a Cadbury Gorilla advertisement.

See also

List of awards and nominations received by Phil Collins

Touring and studio musicians of Phil Collins

Brand X

Notes

References

Bronson, Fred ''The Billboard Book of Number One Hits''. Billboard Books, New York. 1998. p. 624. ISBN 0-8230-7641-5

Giammetti, Mario. ''Phil Collins – The Singing Drummer''. Edizioni Segno. Tavagnacco. 2005. ISBN 88-7282-836-8

Rosen, Craig. ''The Billboard Book of Number One Albums''. Billboard Books, New York. 1996. ISBN 0-8230-7586-9 (Two essays about Collins)

Thompson, Dave. ''Turn It On Again: Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, and Genesis''. Back Beat Books. San Francisco. 2004. ISBN 0-87930-810-9

External links

Phil Collins at Atlantic Records

Genesis' official website

Little Dreams Foundation, project of Phil Collins and his estranged wife Orianne, supporting young musicians

Category:1951 births Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:Ballad musicians Category:Best Song Academy Award winning songwriters Category:BRIT Award winners Category:British expatriates in Switzerland Category:English drummers Category:English film actors Category:English-language singers Category:English male models Category:English male singers Category:English pop singers Category:English rock drummers Category:Blue-eyed soul singers Category:English rock singers Category:English singer-songwriters Category:English television actors Category:English voice actors Category:Genesis (band) members Category:Grammy Award winners Category:MusiCares Person of the Year Honorees Category:Ivor Novello Award winners Category:Lieutenants of the Royal Victorian Order Category:Living people Category:Musicians from London Category:People from Chiswick Category:Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Category:Silver Clef Awards winners Category:Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees

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Coordinates	19°55′55″N44°03′14″N
playername	Collins John
fullname	Collins John
dateofbirth	October 17, 1985
cityofbirth	Zwedru
countryofbirth	Liberia
height
currentclub	Gabala FC
position	Striker
youthyears1	2002–2004
youthclubs1	Twente
years1	2002–2004
clubs1	Twente
caps1	35
goals1	11
years2	2004–2009
clubs2	Fulham
caps2	95
goals2	20
years3	2007–2008
clubs3	→ Leicester City (loan)
caps3	11
goals3	2
years4	2008
clubs4	→ Watford (loan)
caps4	5
goals4	0
years5	2008–2009
clubs5	→ N.E.C. (loan)
caps5	5
goals5	0
years6	2009
clubs6	Roeselare
caps6	11
goals6	0
years7	2010
clubs7	Chicago Fire
caps7	17
goals7	3
years8	2011
clubs8	Gabala FC
caps8	3
goals8	0
nationalyears1	2005
nationalteam1	Netherlands U19
nationalcaps1	4
nationalgoals1	1
nationalyears2	2004
nationalteam2	Netherlands U21
nationalcaps2	1
nationalgoals2	1
nationalyears3	2004
nationalteam3
nationalcaps3	2
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Collins John (born October 17, 1985 in Zwedru) is a Liberian-born Dutch footballer.

Career

Club

John started his professional career at Dutch first division side FC Twente as a 17-year old, going on to score 11 league goals during one 1/2 seasons combined. He was signed by Fulham in January 2004, for a fee thought to be in the region of £600,000 where he was introduced to the Cottage faithful by John Collins, reverse namesake. His debut for the club came against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, on 20 March.

After an auspicious start, John scored 11 league goals in 2005–06, despite only starting 15 of the 37 games he appeared in. With a further two goals in other competitions, he was Fulham's top goalscorer that season. A goal against Middlesbrough on 20 November 2006, a volley from his weaker foot, was later to be named "Goal of the Month" by the BBC, and was in the running for "Goal of the Season".

John started six of the first seven Premiership games of 2006–07, but then lost his place and started only three more times in 2006. Coming on as a second-half substitute, and having had two goals disallowed earlier in the match, he scored his twentieth league goal at Manchester City, in November 2006.

John signed for Leicester City on 23 October 2007 on a three-month loan deal. He made his debut in a 1–0 defeat to Sheffield United a few hours later, and scored his first league goal in a 2–0 win over Barnsley on October 27.

John scored his last goal against Colchester United six days later, in a 1–1 away draw. He returned to Fulham after making a total of eleven league appearances for Leicester.

On 25 January 2008, John joined Watford on a loan deal until the end of the 2007–08 season, with the option of a permanent move after that. He struggled with his fitness during his time at the club, making only three starts and two substitute appearances. In April 2008 he returned to Fulham after tearing a thigh muscle.

On the 2008 transfer deadline day, John moved to NEC Nijmegen on a one-year loan deal, with the Dutch side also obtaining a transfer option. In Nijmegen John suffered with continual problems. Although he was important as a substitute in two UEFA Cup matches, he failed to make an impression in the Dutch league. In January 2009 he went on trial at Charlton Athletic but wasn't offered a contract. Back in Nijmegen he was suspended to the reserve squad by manager Mario Been. On March 3 John returned to Fulham after both NEC and John didn't see any reason for continuing the loan. In March John requested to train with Dutch side Heracles Almelo, alongside his brother Paddy, till the end of the 2008/09 season. The request was denied because John had no intentions to play for Heracles in the next season.

He chose to sign for Belgian Pro League side Roeselare signing a 2 year contract. On December 3 John was suspended and demoted to the reserve squad for disciplinairy reasons by manager Dennis van Wijk. On December 14 Roeselare terminated John's contract.

John joined Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire during their pre-season training camp on 29 January 2010 with a view to signing before the start of the 2010 MLS season. On 11 March 2010 The Chicago Fire hired the Dutch and former Fulham forward on a free transfer. After a disappointing season in MLS, in which he was benched for a poor attitude in training, John was released by Chicago on November 24, 2010.

John joined Gabala FC in Azerbaijan on 25 January 2011.

After failing to revive his career in Azerbaijan, Collins John handed in a transfer request. John is currently on trial with Nottingham Forest F.C. and has flown to Portugal with them for a pre-season break.

International

John was part of the Netherlands under-21 squad that conquered the 2006 European Championship in Portugal.

Previously, he had already made his main team debuts, appearing in a 2-2 friendly match against Sweden, on August 18, 2004. He then made his second appearance for the Netherlands when they played in a friendly match against Liechtenstein.

Club statistics

|- |2002-03||rowspan="2"|FC Twente||rowspan="2"|Dutch League||17||2|||||||||||||||| |- |2003-04||18||9|||||||||||||||| |- |2003-04||rowspan="5"|Fulham FC||rowspan="5"|Premier League||8||4|||||||||||||||| |- |2004-05||27||4|||||||||||||||| |- |2005-06||35||11|||||||||||||||| |- |2006-07||23||1|||||||||||||||| |- |2007-08||2||0|||||||||||||||| |- |2007-08||Leicester City||Championship||11||2|||||||||||||||| |- |2007-08||Watford FC||Championship||5||0|||||||||||||||| |- |-Nottingham Forest F.C.Football League ChampionshipChampionship

|2008-09||NEC Nijmegen||Dutch League||5||0||||||||||2||1|||| |- |2009-10||Roeselare||Belgian Pro League||11||0|||||||||||||||| |- |2010||Chicago Fire||MLS||17||3|||||||||||||| |- |2010-11||rowspan="1"|Gabala FC||Azerbaijan Premier League|||||||||||||||||| |- 40||11|||||||||||||||| 111||22||||||||||||||||

Personal life

John was born in Zwedru, Liberia, but his family emigrated to the Netherlands after the murder of his father, during the Liberian Civil War.

His two brothers Paddy and Ola are also footballers.

Honours

Netherlands U21:

*UEFA U-21 Championship: 2006

References

External links

MLS player profile

Category:1985 births Category:Living people Category:Dutch people of Liberian descent Category:Association football forwards Category:Dutch footballers Category:Liberian footballers Category:Netherlands international footballers Category:Dutch expatriate footballers Category:Expatriate footballers in England Category:FC Twente players Category:Fulham F.C. players Category:Leicester City F.C. players Category:Watford F.C. players Category:NEC Nijmegen players Category:K.S.V. Roeselare players Category:Chicago Fire players Category:Eredivisie players Category:Premier League players Category:The Football League players Category:Belgian Pro League players Category:Expatriate soccer players in the United States Category:Expatriate footballers in Belgium Category:People from Grand Gedeh County

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