The first song Phil Collins wrote for Genesis
Anyone in Genesis would have probably been a little bit sheepish when bringing any of their new songs to their bandmates. The group had already been heralded as one of the most progressive bands in the world, and it would take a lot more than just a primitive riff idea or a vocal melody to stand out among the other epics in their catalogue. Phil Collins was already considered part of the musical family before he even stepped in front of the microphone, but everything really started panning out for him on ‘Misunderstanding’.
Granted, many fans still consider a song like this to be even further proof that Collins ruined Genesis. The band may have sounded different, but considering that this would launch the group into the stratosphere and give them a new lease on life as pop stars in the 1980s, I’m sure that every member of Genesis is crying all the way to the bank.
For all of the great music Collins had brewing, it wasn’t really customary for him to come to the rest of the group with a song. Sure, he may have pulled off the thankless job of replacing Peter Gabriel onstage, but even when they were scoring their first pop-flavoured hits, it was usually Tony Banks or Mike Rutherford who came up with the main melody or riff idea.
When working on Duke, though, Collins needed a break from the rest of the band. His marriage was falling apart, and his failed attempts at trying to salvage his marriage led to his solo album, Face Value, which became one of the biggest breakout successes of the early 1980s. Collins may have been pleasantly surprised, but it probably didn’t feel good for Banks and Rutherford to see their drummer take a leave of absence and make one of the most celebrated pop albums of the 1980s.
Or maybe they should have seen this coming one album before. When beginning work on the album Duke, Collins came to the table with his first song written by himself. Although ‘Turn It On Again’ had an amazing groove and one of the craziest time signatures in a pop song, ‘Misunderstanding’ was Collins to its core, almost like he was preparing for his marriage to fall apart in the lyrics.
This may be a Genesis song in name, but there are many subtle differences that make it feel like a glorified Collins solo track. His vocal inflexions are a lot warmer here, and the fact that the song is so personal points to where both Genesis and his solo career were going to go.
While there were clear sonic differences at first, it would soon become impossible to tell if Collins was writing to put something on one of his own albums or reserving it for Genesis. ‘Anything She Does’ may be a brilliant song, but there are probably hardened fans who would have a hard time knowing whether that was something that Collins was jamming with his mates or just screwing around with by himself.
If anything, ‘Misunderstanding’ actually seems to work better in the context of Face Value than it does on Duke. History may have seen things differently, but in a perfect world, Collins should have probably ditched the reimagined version of ‘Behind the Lines’ on his debut and just saved this song for his solo career. Then again, if he had gotten even more attention on his debut than he already did, he might not have ever returned to his old outfit.