Phil Collins Details Health Struggles in New, Raw Documentary
Phil Collins is sharing a health update in greater detail than ever before.
Years ago, the legendary Genesis drummer had to cancel shows due to his worsening health.
Fans fear for Phil Collins’ health. After a 50 year career, he is no longer able to play the drums.
Retirement is his only option. Drumming led directly to a number of his ailments.
There’s a new Phil Collins documentary discussing his health
More than once, we’ve heard about Phil Collins retiring from music. But the retirement in March of 2022 appears to be the real deal.
On Wednesday, December 18, the incomparable musician’s Phil Collins: Drummer First documentary debuted on YouTube.
“It’s still kind of sinking in a bit…” the 73-year-old drummer admitted in an interview, which took place roughly one year ago. “I’ve spent all my life playing drums. To suddenly not be able to do that is a shock.”
When Collins was just five years old, he picked up his first set of drumsticks. However, his 50 year career “has taken its toll on my hands, legs.”
Of retiring, he commented: “If I can’t do what I did as well as I did it, I’d rather relax and not do anything.” Many perfectionists can likely relate.
“If I wake up one day and I can hold a pair of drumsticks then I’ll have a crack at it,” he admitted. “But I just feel like I’ve used up my air miles.”
Nic Collins has seen his father’s career impact his health
The documentary also included Nic Collins, his 23-year-old son and fellow drummer. He noted that, when his father rose to fame, “musicians, people in bands in general, had this thought that they were invincible.”
He expressed: “I think that’s really what it is with my dad — is just this kind of sense of ‘you’re a drummer, you’re invincible, you do what you do.’ But you don’t know it’s gonna take a toll in the long run.”
Nic acknowledged that his father had undergone “big surgery on his neck [in 2015] that stemmed from all those years playing drums and bad posture.”
Additionally, the elder Collins suffers from drop foot. Drop foot specifically makes it difficult to lift the front part of one’s foot (causing it to drop). This not only interferes with drumming, but causes Collins to use a cane to walk.
Back in the autumn of 2021, Collins admitted: “I’m kind of physically challenged a bit, which is very frustrating ’cause, you know, I’d love to be playing up there with my son.”
He lamented: “I can barely hold a stick with this hand, so there are certain physical things, which get in the way.”
Even then, he dismissed the idea of a reunion tour
Since then, Collins has freely admitted that the idea of going on the road again feels intimidating — even if he were able to drum like he once did.
After half a century of music, the Tarzan composer has more than earned his rest.
One hopes that his son can take some health lessons from his father’s decline.
