Phil Collins全名“Philip David Charles Collins”于1951年1月30日生于伦敦西部一个叫CHISWICK的小镇。童年时代酷爱戏剧，曾因在舞台剧“雾都孤儿”中出色的演出而受到好评。70年代初，菲尔-柯林斯加入“创世纪"(GENESIS)乐队接替鼓手职位。这支以彼得-加布里尔（Peter Gabriel)为首的先锋乐队已成立了二.三年左右，他们的作品大多涉及社会内容，风格独特，深得乐坛好评。

1974年是乐队的顶峰时期，他们创作的摇滚歌剧“百老汇的祭祀羔羊”（Lamb lies down on broadway）十分轰动，门票一抢而空。之后，乐队开始历时半年巡回演出，其间举行了100多场音乐会，所到之处受到热烈欢迎。正当乐队扬名四海之际，GENESIS内部发生矛盾，主唱Peter决定退出，1975年5月，乐队在法国举行了最后一场音乐会。就在乐队面临解体之际，一向在后面打鼓的 Phil毅然跃到台前担任主唱。几年后，乐队只剩下3名成员，但他们继续推出一系列新作，成绩不凡。

1981年Phil正式开始个人发展，并推出首张个人专辑“面值”（Face value）,离开GENESIS的第一张个人专辑就成为白金唱片。单曲“今晚夜空中”（In the air tonight）获得亚军，专辑名列榜首。

1984年，Phil为电影“冲破禁忌”（Against all odds）创作主题曲，该曲不仅在美国连获三周冠军，而且还获奥斯卡（Oscar）提名。1985年专辑“无需茄克”（No jacket required）推出后，在英获得5周冠军，在美则连夺7周冠军，单曲“再给我一个夜晚”(One more night)也蝉联两周第一名。1989年推出的单曲“天堂里的另一天”（Another day in paradise）在英美迅速夺冠，专辑“郑重其事”（But seriously）在英国连续十多个星期高居榜首。

1991年初，已过不惑之年的Phil同时荣获美国音乐奖最佳摇滚艺术家和葛莱美最佳单曲，最佳个人专辑奖，Phil Collins的音乐事业进入一个崭新的阶段。91年GENESIS乐队重新复合，再度携手推出新专辑：“我们不会跳舞”（We can't dance）；1993年推出专辑：“事物的两方面”（Both side)；1996年：“跳入光明”（Dance into the light)；1998年：“精选辑”（Phil Collins...Hits)期间获得很多奖项，6次葛莱美大奖。

BORN: January 31, 1951, Chiswick, London, England

Phil Collins' ascent to the status of one of the most successful pop and adult-contemporary singers of the '80s and beyond was probably as much of a surprise to him as it was to many others. Balding and diminutive, Collins was almost 30 years old when his first solo single, "In the Air Tonight," became a #2 hit in his native U.K. (the song was a Top 20 hit in the U.S.). Between 1984 and 1990, Collins had a string of 13 straight U.S. Top Ten hits.

Long before any of that happened, however, Collins was a child actor/singer who appeared as "the Artful Dodger" in the London production of Oliver! in 1964. (He also has a cameo in A Hard Day's Night, among other films.) He got his first break in music at the end of his teens, when he was chosen to be a replacement drummer in the British art-rock band Genesis in 1970. (Collins maintained a separate jazz career with the band Brand X, as well.) Genesis was fronted by singer Peter Gabriel. They had achieved a moderate level of success in the U.K. and the U.S., with elaborate concept albums, before Gabriel abruptly left in 1974. Genesis auditioned 400 singers without success, then decided to let Collins have a go.

The result was a gradual simplifying of Genesis' sound and an increasing focus on Collins's expressive, throaty voice. And Then There Were Three ... went gold in 1978, and Duke was even more successful. Collins made his debut solo album Face Value in 1981, which turned out to be a bigger hit than any Genesis album. It concentrated on Collins' voice, often in stark, haunting contexts such as the piano-and-drum dirge "In the Air Tonight," which sounded like something from John Lennon's debut solo album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band.

During the '80s, Collins balanced his continuing solo work with Genesis with enormous success. In 1992, Genesis released We Can't Dance and began an extensive tour. Upon its completion, Collins released Both Sides in 1993, and the record became his first album not to produce a major hit single or go multi-platinum. In 1995, he announced that he was leaving Genesis permanently. The following year, he released Dance into the Light. Although the album was a flop, its subsequent supporting tour was a success. The Hits collection followed in 1998, and a year later Collins made his first big band record, Hot Night in Paris.