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The Light the Sky Podcast trades the sunglasses and smiles of Huey Lewis for shoulder pads and synth stabs as we dive into Phil Collins’ 1985 blockbuster No Jacket Required. This week, the gang shares how each of us grew up surrounded by Phil’s music — from solo hits to his time behind the Genesis drum kit — and why this album still resonates today. With all four of us giving it a 9 or higher, we explore the emotional punch of ‘Inside Out,’ the infectious energy of ‘Sussudio,’ and the surprising Miami Vice cameo of ‘Long Long Way to Go.’ We also dig into Phil’s production partnership with Hugh Padgham, and speculate: is this the peak of 80s solo pop? And how does it stack up against Peter Gabriel’s So, which might just be our next stop as we settle the debate on which Genesis frontman had the better solo run. As always, we break it down track-by-track and finish with our signature Love It or Flush It segment. The 80s Summer Tour continues — come along for the ride.
Subscribe, Rate, and Review:
Quick Reviews
Mark Big enough of a cultural force here to define an era. Making this album next level is the intersection of culture between music, TV and fashion.
Chris Sure, there’s a lot of “mid-80s” to this, but here the songwriting allows this album to stay afloat.
Alex Incredible that Phil is able to pull this off – he’s that good of a songwriter where he can deliver an album like this.
Kevin Great sound, great balance, great writing. What’s not to love?
Love It or Flush It
| M | C | A | K | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Sussudio" | 4:23 | T | L | L | B | |
| 2 | "Only You Know and I Know" | 4:20 | L | L | L | T | |
| 3 | "Long Long Way to Go" | 4:20 | B | B | L | L | |
| 4 | "I Don't Wanna Know" | 4:12 | B | F | L | L | |
| 5 | "One More Night" | 4:47 | L | L | F | L | |
| 6 | "Don't Lose My Number" | 4:46 | L | L | B | L | |
| 7 | "Who Said I Would" | 4:01 | L | L | L | L | |
| 8 | "Doesn't Anybody Stay Together Anymore" | 4:18 | L | T | T | F | |
| 9 | "Inside Out" | 5:14 | F | L | B | B | |
| 10 | "Take Me Home" | 5:51 | L | B | L | L |
Love It or Flush It Legend
L = Love. As many as you like.
F = Flush. Must flush at least one track per album.
B = Buy. Purchased for the ultimate LTS “Best Of” playlist for each of us. One per album.
T = Terminate. Should have never even existed. One per album.
The Rules
Each of us must Love, Flush, Buy, and Terminate AT LEAST ONE track on an album, no matter how great or terrible the album is. Whoever wins the “7 for the Buy” section gets an extra Buy or Terminate to use on the album. Because Chris hosts this section and thus cannot win, he gets an extra Buy or Terminate every 4 albums.
Album Information
No Jacket Required is the third solo studio album by English drummer and singer-songwriter Phil Collins. It was released on 18 February 1985 by Virgin Records in the UK and by Atlantic and WEA internationally.
After finishing touring commitments with Genesis and working with Eric Clapton in 1984, Collins resumed his solo career and started work on a new album. He made a conscious decision to write more uptempo and dance-oriented songs, as much of his previous material was influenced by matters surrounding his first divorce. The album features Helen Terry, Peter Gabriel, and Sting as guest backing vocalists. Some songs, like “Don’t Lose My Number” and “Sussudio“, were based around improvisation, and others, like “Long Long Way to Go”, had a political message.
No Jacket Required was received favourably by the majority of critics and was a huge worldwide commercial success, reaching number one in the UK for five consecutive weeks and for seven non-consecutive weeks in the US. It was the second-best-selling album of 1985 in the UK, behind Dire Straits‘ Brothers in Arms. “One More Night“, “Sussudio”, “Don’t Lose My Number” and “Take Me Home” were released as singles with corresponding music videos. All four were top ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, with “Sussudio” and “One More Night” reaching number one. The three singles released in the UK all reached the top 20. Some tracks were featured on the television shows Miami Vice and Cold Case, and “The Man with the Horn” was re-written and re-recorded for the episode “Phil the Shill”.
In 2001, No Jacket Required was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America for selling 12 million copies in the US and amassed worldwide sales of over 25 million copies, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. It won three Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. The No Jacket Required World Tour saw Collins perform 85 concerts which culminated with a performance at both Live Aid shows in London and Philadelphia. Remixes of six songs from the album were released on the compilation 12″ers (1987). In 2010, it was among ten albums nominated for the best British album of the previous 30 years by the Brit Awards.[8] It ranked No. 74 on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame‘s “Definitive 200” list.[9] A remastered deluxe edition with updated artwork and bonus tracks was released in 2016.
