Phil Collins at his (drumming) best - Brand X

Phil Collins was a powerhouse performer in the 70's, 80's and 90's, performing solo and with the band Genesis. His album sales from these two projects and various other side projects (including movie soundtracks, compilations, etc.) have totalled well over 100 million copies. He still continues to make music, however seems to have totally converted to the Adult Contemporary side of things.

To truly appreciate the musical genius this man is, you have to go back to the early Genesis days, and back to the mid-70's when he had a side-project called Brand X. Brand X was essentially a prog-rock/jazz fusion quartet with Phil solely on drums. I knew of Brand X, but never really gave them a listen until several weeks ago, when I picked up their first album, "Unorthodox Behaviour". I was BLOWN AWAY from the start by the pure speed and genius of Phil's drumming. The opening track, "Nuclear Burn" starts out sort of mellow, but gives you a sign of things to come by laying down an 11/8 beat (yes, 11/8). The middle part of the track, where Phil takes a bit of a solo, is the most amazing drumming I've ever heard. He is absolutely flying, playing just about every rudiment known to man, and keeping a riduculous time signature though the whole thing. I was stunned to hear this, because I've always known Phil was a top notch drummer, but he'd gotten away from the more difficult drumming as Genesis and his solo career became more mainstream. To hear him playing this way was almost enough to knock me out of my chair. It's that amazing. The rest of the album features some very tasty tracks as well, spanning several genres including funk, jazz, rock, and even a little samba thrown in for good measure. If you enjoy complex, but very accessible and catchy music, give this disc a listen. You won't be disappointed. It's a great changeup from the current music scene, yet still sounds very relevant. I'm going to be checking out several other Brand X offerings. As his solo career and Genesis tour schedule became busier and busier, Phil opted out of several of the Brand X recordings. But I know of 3 that he is the exclusive drummer, and I'll be tracking them down soon.