Phil Collins

Phil Collins's frontman talents lay dormant for many years when he was the drummer for prog-rockers Genesis, taking a back seat to Peter Gabriel. When Gabriel quit in 1975, Collins stepped out from behind the drums and made Genesis a hit-making machine throughout the 1980s. Collins also launched a successful solo career as a pop singer, which he kept going in conjunction with Genesis until he became a full-time solo artist in 1996 (though he and Gabriel returned for a 1999 Genesis reunion). As a solo artist, Collins released highly personal and introspective work (not always as commercially viable), wrote a hit soundtrack song for Disney's TARZAN, jammed with Paul McCartney and Ozzy Osbourne, formed a big band to perform jazz versions of his many hits, and played drums for Queen Elizabeth II's "house" band at Buckingham Palace.

• pop