Phil Collins: ‘I Am Not Ready to Return to the Full Concert Stage’
After Phil Collins announced last month that he would be participating in a charity concert, speculation started to spread that he was testing the waters for a full-scale comeback tour. But the singer has quashed those hopes with an announcement he released today.
"I will be performing three or four songs semi-acoustically, and maybe one more with my 13-year-old son Nicolas on drums, but that's all as I am not ready to return to the full concert stage at this time," Collins said in a statement.
The official statement may be a reaction to former Genesis bandmate Mike Rutherford's recent comments to Rolling Stone, in which he addressed rumors about a reunion tour. "If he does anything, I think it’ll be something solo first," he told the magazine. "I just think he’s testing the waters because retirement didn’t really agree with him."
The announcement also clarifies Collins' role in the upcoming charity concert. "Phil Collins announced today that he has no plans to return to the concert stage at this time contrary to recent news items," it reads. "He will be performing three or four songs at a charity event in Miami on Dec. 6 on behalf of the Little Dreams Foundation, the charity that he co-founded with his ex-wife Orianne, but has expressed concern that his brief appearance could be incorrectly viewed as a full-on Phil Collins show based on some media reports. While Phil is fully supportive of the charity he does not want ticket holders to have any false expectation regarding his appearance."
Collins returned briefly to the stage in May, when he performed 'In the Air Tonight' and 'Land of Confusion' at the Miami Country Day School’s spring concert with the school's band. It was the first time he'd been onstage in three years.
And with the upcoming release of several Genesis projects -- including a pair of documentaries and a box set that spans the band's entire career as well as various solo material -- fans were hoping that a reunion, and possibly tour, featuring the classic group lineup from the mid-'70s would be in the works.
Collins has been hesitant to commit to any sort of long-term gigs since revealing a painful spine injury five years ago that makes it impossible for him to sit at a drum kit for any period of time, even though a year ago he briefly considered coming out of retirement.