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Phil Collins - Live and Loose in Paris is an edited recording of a concert given by Phil Collins at the Omnisports Theatre in Paris in 1997. I use the word "edited" to refer to the fact that gaps and pauses between songs seem to have been eliminated as well as, I suspect, most of the on-stage banter (if there had been any), not to the odious practice of editing or "splicing" to correct "mistakes" made during a live performance. In fact, Phil Collins take some pains to note in the booklet that this has not been done. For those of you who don't know who Phil Collins is, he was the drummer, and eventually the lead singer, of seventies rock group Genesis before launching a very successful solo career in the eighties. The world seems to be divided into people who like Phil and people who loathe him, and fortunately I fall into the former category. I think his third solo album, Noe Jacket Required (which won a Grammy for Album of the Year 1985), is an absolute masterpiece and I'm happy to see 3 songs from that album represented in this concert (Don't Lose My Number, Long Long Way To Go and Sussudio). It would have been nicer if he had also included Take Me Home, as I've heard some pretty wild live versions of that, but I guess I can't have everything. In this concert, Phil is joined by a fairly large group of musicians, including a brass section, male and female backup singers, plus the usual assortment of guitarists, drummers and keyboard players. The Omnisports theatre is an unusual venue for a concert performance since the stage is circular and in the middle surrounded by audience. However, Phil and co. make the most of this through stage antics that include running in circles around the perimeter of the stage, each member of the band facing a different direction towards different sets of audiences and even right at the very end taking several bows in different parts of the stage. The first song, Hand in Hand, features some nicely improvised vocalisations. The energy level of this concert seems to be set at 11, except right at the end Phil somehow manages to notch it up even higher to 12. In the middle are a few slower numbers, such as Another Day In Paradise and (one of my personal favourites) the theme song from the film Against All Odds. Separate Lives features a really nice harmonisation and solo spots between Phil and his two backup singers. Wear My Hat features some zany hat changing and the last two songs Something Happened On The Way To... and Sussudio really bring the house down. In addition to being the lead singer, Phil Collins played the drums on some of the songs and the keyboard on 1 or 2 songs. All in all, this is a really enjoyable concert and one that I would highly recommend to all fans of Phil Collins around the world. Play Concert Tracks 1. Hand in Hand 2. Hang in Long Enough 3. Don't Lose My Number 4. Another Day in Paradise 5. Against All Odds 6. Lorenzo 7. Separate Lives 8. Long Long Way to Go 9. In the Air Tonight 10. Timbantiocha 11. Easy Lover 12. Dance into the Light 13. Wear My Hat 14. Something Happened on the Way to Heaven 15. Sussudio 16. Credits