Relive Phil Collin’s 1985 “Against All Odds” Performance

Relive Phil Collin’s 1985 “Against All Odds” Performance | I Love Classic Rock Videos

via Live Aid / Youtube

 

Live Aid was supposed to be the pinnacle of Phil Collins’ career. Collins performed at London’s Wembley Stadium and at Philadelphia’s Franklin Field for the US leg of Live Aid, with the help of a celebrity pilot.

Collins, the lead singer of Genesis, was the only artist to appear on both parts of Live Aid, although he had a very different experience on each half. When he made an early afternoon appearance at Wembley Stadium, he performed “Against All Odds” and “In The Air Tonight” on piano. During playing “Against All Odds,” he remembered his finger sliding because he was sweating on the white stage. One billion people across the world saw the performance on television and heard the off-note that was played in front of 80,000 people at Wembley. After realizing this, Phil said, “Oh God, what a good start for the day this is.”

After his London show, Phil took a Concorde over the Atlantic and performed his solo set in Philadelphia. He met up with Eric Clapton and Led Zeppelin, two of his musical pals, in Philadelphia. Phil got to the John F. Kennedy Stadium at 7, asked Eric what they were playing, and joined Eric onstage around 7:30. Between acts, he hurried to Robert Plant’s trailer to discuss Led Zeppelin’s performance with the band.

While there were mixed feelings about Collins’ union with Led Zeppelin on stage at Live Aid, absolutely no one could deny that the singer/drummer of Genesis was incredible during his solo act on the London stage.

Check out Phil Collins’ performance of “Against All Odds” here.