Phil Collins shared upsetting news about where his health conditions have taken him.
In an interview with BBC Breakfast, Collins, 70, admitted that he can no longer play the drums.
“I’d love to but you know, I mean, I can barely hold a stick with this hand,” the “In the Air Tonight” singer said. “So there are certain physical things that get in the way.”
Joining Collins during the interview were his bandmates from Genesis, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks. After their reunion tour was postponed last year due to COVID-19, the group is ready to take the stage once again, but with Collins’ son Nic taking over drumming duties.
Not being able to play the drums has taken a mental toll on Collins.
“I’m kind of physically challenged a bit which is very frustrating because I’d love to be playing up there with my son,” he said.
He added that he doesn’t know if he will perform again once the band’s tour concludes.
“We’re all men of our age, and I think to some extent, I think it probably is putting it to bed,” Collins said. “I think yeah, I think just generally for me, I don’t know if I want to go out on the road anymore.”
In 2015, Collins underwent back surgery, and told Billboard a year later that the after-effects of the surgery had him feeling as if he was walking “on sticks.”
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be fit enough to play the drums again on tour,” Collins said at the time. “My left arm has changed — it’s a neural thing. The back surgery I had was great — I mean, how good can surgery be?”
“But it was problem-free. But then when I was recovering on crutches, I fell and fractured my foot,” he continued. “When I recovered from foot surgery, I fell again and fractured another part of the same foot. My right foot now is completely numb.”
Two years after his surgery, Collins took a damaging fall in a hotel room that required hospitalization. He received several stitches for a “severe gash on his head close to his eye,” according to his Facebook page. The post also mentioned that Collins “suffers from ‘drop foot’ as a result of a back operation which makes it difficult to walk.”
