Was just reading some discussion of Phil Collins and thinking about how unusual it was that he was able to churn out so many hits in the 1980s and early '90s as both a solo artist and a member of Genesis. Collins was one of the biggest solo artists of the '80s (I count 14 Top 40 hits in the decade). There were plenty of contemporary examples of popular frontmen going out on their own, but in all the other cases I can think of, either the solo career underwhelmed (Mick Jagger), they left the band entirely/the band broke up (Sting), or they may not have quite left the band but sort of faded away (Michael Jackson).

Not only did Collins not leave his band, Genesis released four albums and produced 11 Top 40 hits in the '80s, almost as many as Collins had by himself. They have never broken up. Has this ever been equaled, before or since?

To make things even crazier, Mike Rutherford's side project, Mike and the Mechanics, also had a series of '80s hits and has been together for almost 40 years, with a six-year break.