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But the real truth is, drummers will miss Phil Collins. Before he fell victim to schmaltz, he routinely turned in powerful, priceless star-turns of drumming prowess. Take, for example, his playing on Apocalypse in 9/8 from the epic composition Supper's Ready (on the 1972 Genesis album Foxtrot). During a meter of 9/8, with the bass and guitar holding down a repeated accent pattern, Collins solos fluidly in a manner that is neither stiff nor mathematical. Likewise, on Los Endos, from Genesis's 1975 album A Trick Of The Tail, Collins plays a hyperspeed salsa-pattern (think Santana after too many Red Bulls) and lays down some blistering paradiddles.

As a floating member of the famed jazz-fusion outfit Brand X, Collins could be counted on for fiery and clever performances, most notably on the Billy Cobham-inspired cut Nuclear Burn, from the 1975 album Unorthodox Behavior. But it was on Peter Gabriel's third solo album, released in 1980, on the song Intruder, that the now-notorious Phil Collins "face hugger" drum sound was born. As per Gabriel's instructions, there were no cymbals nor hi-hats, and the thunderous, heavily gated drums were pushed to the front of the mix. Collins was so taken with the effect that he used it on his breakthrough solo hit, In The Air Tonight.

And what of that song's famous drum fill? Surely, Collins spent days, weeks, even years perfecting such a sequence, right? Wrong. "I never planned to have a big fill at that point in the song," he revealed recently. "I just wanted the drums to enter. Well, after I did about five takes of the tune, I started to get a bit more adventurous, and on the sixth take that fill happened to come out. While I liked the fill, it was really the rest of the take that sounded very good, and that's why I kept it. So that whole thing - one of the most important parts of the song, really - happened by accident."

Here's hoping that Phil Collins gets back behind the drum kit and has more accidents like that one. But please, no more Sussudio.

By Joe Bosso

Around the web:

• Herfinnur ÁrnafjallYes, as rock music goes, post Peter Gabriel Genesis might be considered schmalzy. But then, post-PG Genesis was pure pop music (even if the members of Genesis might have disagreed at the time). And as pop acts go, Genesis definitely compares favorably to most acts of the80s and onwards. Nevermind "Sussudio or "I Can't Dance". silly songs, great musicanship. They still aren't worse than 83% of what is out there. But take songs like "Land of Confusion" and "Jesus he Loves Me": pop rock masterpieces, basta! I really don't see how choosing a woman based on hating those songs could be seen as proof of good taste or high standards. Now, you want bad taste and schlager schmalz, there's Phil Collins Musical and Disney work. The music for Tarzan made me stay away from Disney for years thereafter. And that is what Collins is going to spend ALL his time on, now that he isn't performing anymore. So something WILL be lost; time spent taking your kids to see Phil Collins Musicals :(
• Stephen HarrellThis article was just written in poor taste altogether. Collins is an amazing song writer and kicked out quite a list of hook-heavy great melodies. Not only is there plenty of insults about his music (like any artist doesn't have a few turds in their portfolio), you go so far as to call him "potato face". I visit Music Radar for the best music news and reviews.....NOT to hear some writer rant about how badly a pop-music legend sucks. This barely deserves to be on a random blog site. Much less on this site. We, as musicians, would do a lot better if we TRIED to act a little more positive about each other and quit all the hating. I, for one, am getting tired of all the "worst of" articles on this site. And it directly reflects the elitist attitude that saturates the music industry today. While no name was attached to this article, I'd REALLY like to know if whoever crafted it can claim writing any song that 90% of the general public has heard (or hummed along to). Seriously guys.