Phil Collins has hinted that he may not be done with music yet, revealing that he plans to experiment in the studio after what he described as a “difficult, frustrating few years.” In a rare interview with Zoe Ball for BBC Two’s Phil Collins: Eras – In Conversation, the music legend, who is approaching his 75th birthday, opened up about his desire to create new material.
Collins expressed optimism about his future in music, saying, “The things that are ahead for me would be, apart from just being back to being totally mobile and healthy, is go in there and have a fiddle about and see if there’s more music.” He added, “You tend to sort of feel, that’s it, I’ve done that. But you’ve gotta start doing it to see if you can do it. Otherwise, you don’t do it. So that is something on my horizon.”
This announcement follows years of health struggles for Collins, including five knee surgeries and ongoing challenges due to a severe spinal injury sustained in 2007. Despite rumors about his health, including false reports about him receiving end-of-life hospice care, Collins remains determined to explore his musical ideas.
When Ball encouraged him to return to the studio, Collins admitted that he still has unfinished material, saying, “I’ve got some things that are half formed or were never finished, and a couple of things that were finished, which I like, so you know. Maybe life in the old dog. Yeah. You’ll see.”
Collins, best known as the frontman of Genesis and for hits like In The Air Tonight, retired from touring after his final live performance in 2022. His decision came after years of health issues, including a spinal injury that left him with nerve damage and made drumming nearly impossible. “I’ve spent all my life playing drums. To suddenly not be able to do that is a shock,” he said.
Collins has not ruled out returning to drumming if his health improves. He remarked, “If I can’t do what I did as well as I did it, I’d rather relax and not do anything. But if I wake up one day and I can hold a pair of drumsticks, then I’ll have a crack at it. But I just feel like I’ve used up my air miles.”
The full episode of Phil Collins: Eras – In Conversation will debut on BBC Sounds and BBC iPlayer on January 26 at 6am and will be broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on February 1. Episodes one to four are already available on BBC Sounds.
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