Just Say the Word and Listen to Phil Collins's First Crack at 'Sussudio'

"Phil Collins released a demo version of the tune in celebration of his upcoming No Jacket Required reissue, which is due out on September 12 and being finalized amid his current health struggles. As with most demos, it alternates between familiarity and gibberish: The slick instrumentals that reached No. 1 on the Billboard charts are the same, but Collins is still working out, word-wise, what exactly the "Sussudio" in question is."

""This is one of those examples of improvising lyrics," Collins, who recently had to dispute reports that he was in hospice care, said in a statement. "Sometimes you use the lyric, other times you're in big trouble because what you write doesn't mean anything. I set up this drum machine pattern, and I got some chords, and I started to sing into the microphone. And this word came out. Which was 'su-sussudio.'""

Phil Collins released a demo of "Sussudio" ahead of the No Jacket Required reissue scheduled for September 12, with the reissue being finalized amid his current health struggles. The demo preserves the slick instrumentals that propelled the original to No. 1 on the Billboard charts while featuring improvised, sometimes nonsensical vocalizations for the lyric. The track originated from a drum machine pattern and a set of chords, with spontaneous singing producing the word 'su-sussudio.' Similar improvisational techniques were used on Genesis's "Who Dunnit?," which began from repeating a 'ridiculous lyric.' The demo alternates familiarity and gibberish.

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