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The 1993 album Phil Collins called his best work: “My favourite”
Whilst Phil Collins achieved massive commercial success during the 1980s with albums like Face Value and No Jacket Required, he has long distinguished between popular achievement and personal artistic satisfaction. The early 1990s marked a turning point when his personal circumstances shifted dramatically, prompting him to turn to music as an emotional outlet to process complex feelings stemming from his ongoing divorce.
In response to this upheaval, Collins recorded Both Sides in 1993, an album he now identifies as his greatest creative accomplishment. What distinguished this project was his hands-on approach—he performed every instrument on the record himself, eschewing the luxury of top-tier session musicians and studios that had previously defined his solo work. When asked about his artistic favourite in 2016, Collins emphasised that Both Sides represented his finest songwriting and creativity, making clear that commercial performance held no bearing on his personal assessment.
In short
- Phil Collins considers his 1993 album Both Sides his greatest creative achievement, despite lower commercial success than his 1980s work
- He recorded it whilst navigating personal turmoil and used songwriting as emotional therapy
- Collins performed every instrument on the album himself, prioritising artistic fulfillment over industry resources
Explained simply
Phil Collins is a drummer and singer who achieved enormous commercial success during the 1980s with hit albums like Face Value and No Jacket Required. His records sold millions of copies worldwide and established him as one of the decade's biggest recording artists.
The early 1990s brought significant personal upheaval to Collins's life, particularly around his divorce. To process these emotions, he turned to music and created Both Sides in 1993, an album on which he performed every instrument himself rather than relying on other musicians and expensive studios.
Collins has consistently distinguished between commercial success and personal artistic satisfaction. When discussing his favourite among all his work in 2016, he identified Both Sides as his greatest creative achievement, indicating that sales figures meant less to him than the songwriting and creativity he invested in that particular project.