Serious Hits... Live!

In taking an “all hits” approach to his 1990 concert album Serious Hits Live, Phil Collins underscored the immense impact his music had on the preceding decade. Of the 15 songs here, almost all are hits, as emblematic of the '80s as Miami Vice (which frequently featured Collins’ music on its soundtrack). For all his stature in the pop world, there's subtlety to Collins’ best songs. Thus it’s impressive to hear how adaptable they are to an arena setting. Of course, the punchy, percolating horn-driven rhythms of “Sussudio” and “Something Happened on the Way to Heaven” are perfectly suited to a large and energized crowd. But even the bleakly atmospheric mist of “In the Air Tonight” seems to gain power in this vast setting. While that song was originally conceived as a solo demo in the confines of Collins’ home, here it feels like a communal anthem elevated to Star Wars proportions. When Collins’ stone-crushing drums erupt in the second half, the song starts to feel like a march into the darkest recesses of the most colorful decade in pop music.