Going Back (The Ultimate Edition)

Phil Collins

Atlantic, 2010

http://www.philcollins.com

REVIEW BY: Mark Millan

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 10/21/2010

I don’t know why rock stars bother to announce retirements anymore as it seems none of them actually bother to get around to retiring. Phil Collins has at various times retired from Genesis and touring only to reappear a few years back to tour…with Genesis. His last solo jaunt around the globe was six years ago and that followed the most disappointing solo album of his illustrious career, the bloody terrible lite R&B-styled Testify

I must admit when Collins did rejoin Genesis in 2007, I was hoping it would light his creative spark and that they would produce some new material worthy of their respective talents. This, of course never happened, and Collins went straight back to his “retirement” where he busied himself with the rather bleak task of divorcing wife number three. He also had to deal with the loss of hearing in one ear and received surgery on his neck to repair some damaged vertebrae, which left him unable to play the drums. 

All of these occurrences, however, could not get in the way of Collins’ long held ambition to record an entire album of soul classics paying homage to his idols. So with a drumstick taped to his hand and a list of his favorite songs pinned to the wall, Collins got busy and began working on his eighth studio album, the glorious Going Back. Collins employed the help of former Funk Brothers (session stars at Motown) Bob Babbitt, Eddie Willis, and Ray Monette to play on the album because he had decided to record exclusively from the Motown catalogue.  my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250

In doing press for this release, Collins stated that from a list of 40 songs by the time the album was due for mixing, they had already completed 29 of them. And so there are two versions of Going Back, a standard 18-track version and the sprawling 25-track Ultimate Edition that I am reviewing here. Phil produced the record himself, and it’s clearly evident that this was indeed a labor of love for him. He went to incredible lengths to recapture the feelings and moods of every song without trying to do anything too drastic to them. This means that they are all faithful versions and every song is instantly recognizable for lovers of Motown like myself. 

From the time I purchased this, I made the choice not to read the track list because I wanted to be completely surprised when I first played it. So I spent hours the other night playing it over and over again, not quite believing just how superb this record really is, and every time I have played it since, it just gets better. The musicians have done an outstanding job treating each song with the care and respect they deserve, and I can quite confidently say that Collins has never sung any better than he has here. His range is still completely intact and he sings every note from a place deep within himself that separates these performances from anything that has come before them. 

Don’t get me wrong, he has always had pleasant voice, especially for ballads, but this is really something else. His performance on one of my all-time favorite songs “Standing In The Shadows Of Love” is a case in point.  It ain’t easy taking on The Four Tops and that song harbors one of the late great Levi Stubbs’ greatest vocals. Collins attacks it with surprising vigor and grit that elevates the superbly played track to a higher place. Another great cut is the slow-burning funk of “Papa Was A Rolling Stone” that again finds Collins reaching new ground with his cruisy lead vocal and superb harmonies. 

I could go on for days about each and every track on this album telling you just how brilliantly these guys brought this thing together, but I really don’t have time. It is just packed to the brim with wonderful versions of classics like “Ain’t That Peculiar,” “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg,” “Uptight (Everything’s Alright),” and another personal favorite of mine, “You’ve Been Cheatin’.” So as much as I am a fan of Genesis and the admirer of the odd Collins solo LP, I honestly believe that Going Back is the best damn thing Phil Collins has ever done. Enough said.

Rating: A

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