Phil Collins‘ 20-year son Nic, the drummer on Genesis‘ farewell tour, tells Rolling Stone he thinks the last show last month in London brought the curtain down on his dad’s performing career.
“I think at the moment, he’s definitely retired. If you ask me on a serious level, I think that show in London was my dad’s last show. But then again, he said that in 2004 and we wound up doing a tour in 2018. You can never be sure, but I also do think that my dad is probably excited about the next step in his life. Music has given him so much, but he’s also given so much to it. His career has pretty much determined his life for the past 50 years. I think for him to be able to take a step back and not have that pressure that he’s had for decades, I think is going to be nice for him. For me, I think that was that, but who knows?”
Original Genesis singer Peter Gabriel was in the audience for the London show and came backstage to celebrate with the band afterwards.
“Weirdly, I’d never met him,” says Nic. “To be able to finally speak to someone I knew had such a big impact on my dad’s life and obviously mine as a result … was really great…
“He said, ‘This is the end of something I was a part of.’ We spoke briefly. And then him and my dad spoke pretty extensively and caught up about all their good times. It was pretty great to see.”
Asked if Genesis would ever do any shows with Gabriel, Nic said, “I don’t think so. From where I am at the moment, I don’t think that would happen. I haven’t heard anything about it. I know it was mentioned by fans, especially at the early stages of the reunion. But I think ultimately the band has grown and people have gone and done their separate things…
“I don’t love it when artists go on their last tour and they end up doing it for ages. I think there’s something to be said that we did it for just about 50 shows. It kept it relatively exclusive, which was cool. It didn’t feel overdone or way too extensive when it didn’t need to be.”
Nic is now back on the road with his band, Better Strangers, and they’ve released a single, “But I Don’t Know Your Name.”
The plan is to release more singles, but Nic adds that it’s yet to be determined whether that leads to an album or a series of EPs.
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