Dance into the Light

by Phil Collins

Overview

Dance Into the Light is as self-explanatory as titles get: after dwelling in the darkness following a divorce and a split from Genesis, Phil Collins is ready to get happy. That isn't to say Dance Into the Light is devoid of either ambition or sobriety: Collins turns "Just Another Story" into a piece of meditative funk, while "Wear My Hat," "River So Wide," and "Lorenzo" find the drummer delving into African rhythms reminiscent of Paul Simon, Peter Gabriel, and Sting (it also points toward the work Collins did on Tarzan just a few years later). Nevertheless, the overall tenor of the record is bright and cheerful, the sound of a man ready for a revival. Sometimes, he'll throw out a specific callback to his past -- the title track recalls the snappy punch of "Sussudio" -- but often, he settles into an expertly modulated craft, favoring sprightly pop to somnolent ballads. Given this chipper outlook, it's odd that the thing that undoes Dance Into the Light -- outside of the slight cognitive dissonance between the straight-ahead pop and Afrobeat explorations -- is an indulgence all too typical of '90s albums made with the CD in mind: tracks stretch out one or two minutes longer than necessary, adding up to a 13-track album that feels flabby at just over an hour. Trimmed by 20 minutes, this would've been a nice little adult pop album, but as it stands, it sounds like a lively little record attempting to escape its immaculately tailored straitjacket. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	02/26/2016
Label:	Rhino
UPC:	0081227952112
Rank:	8411

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Dance Into the Light
2. That's What You Said
3. Lorenzo
4. Just Another Story
5. Love Police
6. Wear My Hat

Disc 2

7. It's in Your Eyes
8. Oughta Know By Now
9. Take Me Down
10. The Same Moon
11. River So Wide
12. No Matter Who
13. The Times They Are A-Changin'

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Phil Collins   Primary Artist,Lead,Drums,Piano,Guitar,Vocals,Kalimba,Bagpipes,Keyboards,Percussion,Slide Guitar,Guitar (Rhythm),Vocals (Background)
Arnold McCuller   Guest Artist,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Amy Keys   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Andrew Woolfolk   Saxophone
Brad Cole   Organ,Strings,Keyboards,Synthesizer
Arturo Velasco   Trombone
Nathan East   Bass,Guitar (Bass)
Daniel Fornero   Trumpet
Harry Kim   Trumpet
Daryl Stuermer   Lead,Guitar,Guitar (Rhythm)
Ronnie Caryl   Guitar,Rhythm,Soloist,Guitar (Rhythm)
Darryl Steurmer   Guitar
Vine Street Horns   Horn,Trumpet

Technical Credits

Simon Osborne   Assistant Engineer
Bob Dylan   Composer
Brad Cole   Group Member
Hugh Padgham   Mixing,Engineer,Producer,Mixing Engineer
Phil Collins   Mixing,Arranger,Composer,Lyricist,Producer,Group Member,Mixing Engineer
Michaela Odone   Composer