Phil Collins Face Value Features Some of the Best Music of 1980s

Phil Collins was considered one of the most successful musical artists of the 1980s. Between 1990 with his first solo album Face Value until his forth solo album in a decade But Seriously, Collins had a total of seven number one hits on the U.S. charts. Face Value, released in February 1981, was a successful start for the former Genesis drummer who had never really shown his music writing abilities until then.

The first hit single of Collins solo career was "In the Air Tonight". The song hit the top 20 on the U.S. Billboard and number one U.K. charts, but easily became one of Collins' most memorable songs. The song was immortalized on the hit television show "Miami Vice" on the pilot episodes of the series. The revolutionary television show was the first to pair modern music with segments of the show in an MTV style. The dramatic sound of "In the Air Tonight" worked perfectly to reflect the emotions and energy the television show was working to produce.

The song was also used on several television advertisements promoting everything from beer to Mountain Dew to chocolate. An 2008 commercial in New Zealand brought the song back in popularity in that country bringing the song to number one of their charts for three weeks. The song is also used in many sporting events, including the NFL, when introducing players, as well as a couple of video games.

Collins said in various interviews over his career that Face Value was a reflection of his feelings during his troubled emotions during his divorce. Collins wrote most of the songs on the album by himself with two exceptions. "Behind the Lines" was written by himself and fellow Genesis members Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks. Actually "Behind the Lines" was originally released on the Genesis album, Duke, but Collins re-released the song on Face Value the following year. The style of the song is vastly different between the Genesis "art-rock" version and Collins' holding a slower version.

"Tomorrow Never Knows" is actually a Beatles release from their 1966 album Revolver. The song was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The song was a change from the Beatles regular style featuring more of a 60's psychedelic theme. It was considered very experimental for the Beatles at the time. Collins changed the song slightly adding a short version of "Over the Rainbow" in the introduction of the song.

The other songs on the album didn't have the appeal as "In the Air Tonight", but a couple found some success on the charts. "I Missed Again", reached number 14 in the U.K. and number 19 in the U.S. "If Leaving Me is Easy" was released as a single in the U.K. helping it to reach number 17 on the U.K. charts, but never making it that high on the U.S. charts.

For as popular as Collins became in the 1980s, Face Value really didn't receive the credit it deserved. With the exception of the Best New Artist Grammy Collins received for the Face Value album, it went by without much recognition. Many of the songs on the album including "I Missed Again", "The Roof is Leaking" and "I'm Not Moving" were well written and excellently performed pieces. The album feature an eclectic mix of vocal and instrumental showing the talent of the true artist Collins is.

Phil Collins Face Value is available at these cites on the Web:
http://www.rhapsody.com/phil-collins/face-value--atlantic
http://www.tower.com/tower_search/search_1.cfm?keywords=face%20value%20phil%20collins
http://www.buy.com/prod/face-value/q/loc/109/60149819.html
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http://www.amazon.com/Face-Value-Phil-Collins/dp/B000002I8D/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1236613860&sr=8-1