Phil Collins has released a previously unheard live version of his 1981 hit, If Leaving Me Is Easy. It’s taken from the bonus disc of the reissued version of his classic album of the same year, Face Value.
Face Value and 1993’s *Both Sides *are being reissued on November 6, as the singer launches the Take A Look At Me Now campaign, which will see all his solo albums remastered and re-released in expanded form. The reissues have been curated by Collins’ himself, and come with updated artwork, the original cover portraits having been re-shot. The extra tracks, many of which have never been issued on CD before, attempt to show how Collins’s songs have evolved over time by contrasting the original studio versions with later concert performances.
“I’ve always been quite proud of my demos and have often made them available as B-sides, but with a few exceptions, I have avoided including those on these collections,” says Collins. “Instead, I’ve focused on how nicely the songs developed when played on stage, rather than showing how they originated.”
Each album in the series has been remastered by Nick Davis, who has worked on a number of Genesis projects, including the 1970–1975, 1976–1982 and 1983–1998 box sets. Both albums will be released as double CD digipak and digital versions featuring the remastered album and the additional content, while the vinyl versions will not include the extra tracks. Box sets featuring space for all the reissues in the series — which will be released over the coming months — will also be made available.
Collins has revealed that he’ll be performing at a charity fundraiser in Miami this coming December.
Face Value tracklist
- In The Air Tonight
- This Must Be Love
- Behind The Lines
- The Roof Is Leaking
- Droned
- Hand In Hand
- I Missed Again
- You Know What I Mean
- Thunder And Lightning
- I’m Not Moving
- If Leaving Me Is Easy
- Tomorrow Never Knows
Bonus tracks – CD and digital formats only:
- Misunderstanding – Live
- If Leaving Me Is Easy – Live*
- In The Air Tonight – Live*
- Behind The Lines – Live*
- Roof Is Leaking – Demo*
- Hand In Hand – Live*
- I Missed Again – Live*
- ….And So To F – Live*
- This Must Be Love – Demo*
- Please Don’t Ask – Demo*
- Misunderstanding – Demo *
- Against All Odds – Demo
Both Sides tracklist
- Both Sides Of The Story
- Can’t Turn Back The Years
- Everyday
- I’ve Forgotten Everything
- We’re Sons Of Our Fathers
- Can’t Find My Way
- Survivors
- We Fly So Close
- There’s A Place For Us
- We Wait And We Wonder
- Please Come Out Tonight
Bonus tracks – CD and digital formats only:
- Take Me With You
- Both Sides Of The Story – Live*
- Can’t Turn Back The Years – Live*
- Survivors – Live*
- Everyday – Live*
- We Wait And We Wonder – Live*
- Can’t Find My Way – Demo*
- I’ve Been Trying
- Both Sides Of The Story
- Hero – Demo
* previously unavailable on CD.