Phil Collins speaks out on need to "correct things"
Singer-songwriter Phil Collins is behind some of the biggest hit songs of this era. But that fame came with a price: maligned by critics, his personal life suffered greatly.
Now, Collins opens up to set the record straight in a new book, which he discusses in an interview with Jim Axelrod for “CBS Sunday Morning with Jane Pauley.”
“There’s such a lot of untruths and misconceptions about who I am, what I am, what I’ve done and why I’ve done it,” Collins tells Axelrod in an interview to be broadcast Sunday, October 23 on CBS. “It’s not a ‘get even’ book, but it’s just … an opportunity to correct things.”
Collins, 65, is brutally honest about his life and his career in the book “Not Dead Yet” (Crown Archtype). He tells Axelrod he was so frank because he felt the need to get the information out, while also, perhaps, gaining a little clarity about what he’s been through.
He’s sold more than 250 million records, including the hits “In the Air Tonight,” “Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now),” “One More Night,” and the Academy Award-winning “You’ll Be In My Heart.” He also has some searing regrets.
“I mean, when you’ve been married three times and you’ve got five kids, you don’t live with them, and you’ve been divorced three times, you start to wonder whether it’s you, you know? It can’t always be someone else’s fault,” he says.
Axelrod visits Collins at his Miami home, where he talks about his career in music; the day he played Live Aid concerts in both London and Philadelphia; and the possibility of a comeback.
Collins also reveals another, somewhat surprising passion besides music: he and Axelrod head to The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, where Collins explains his fascination with collecting Alamo artifacts.
Collins also opens up about how alcoholism nearly killed him in 2006. He recalled when he was in a hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland and his organs were shutting down. “The doctor said to Lindsay, who is my assistant, ‘Are Mr. Collins’ papers in order, because we don’t think he’s -- he might not make it,’ you know?”
The Emmy Award-winning “Sunday Morning” with host Jane Pauley is broadcast on CBS on Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Executive producer is Rand Morrison.
Follow the program on Twitter (@CBSSunday), Facebook, Instagram (#CBSSundayMorning) and at cbssundaymorning.com. You can also listen to “Sunday Morning” audio podcasts at Play.it.
For more info:
- “Not Dead Yet: The Memoir” by Phil Collins (Crown Archtype); Also available in eBook, Digital Audio CD, and Digital Audio Download formats
- philcollins.com
- “Phil Collins: The Singles” available via Amazon (CD and Vinyl) and iTunes