After much public confusion about his future, Phil Collins has confirmed he is retiring from music.
The drummer/singer made the announcement on his website, Philcollins.co.uk. The message came after his publicist denied that he was planning to stop making music.
“I am stopping so I can be a full-time father to my two young sons on a daily basis,” he wrote.
Collins also reacted to recent press stories about his wellbeing.
“Many of the articles printed over the last few months have ended up painting a picture of me that is more than a little distorted,” he wrote. “The result is that I have ended up sounding like a tormented weirdo who thinks he was at the Alamo in another life, who feels very sorry for himself, and is retiring hurt because of the bad press over the years. None of this is true.”
Collins had previously been quoted as saying he believed he had captured paranormal energy in photos of the Alamo, the site of the Texas Revolution battle in 1836. He was also quoted as saying he had considered suicide.
However, he has now stated that he was taken out of context, signing off his message by writing: “There’s no need for the straitjacket!”
The former Genesis man has two sons, Nicholas and Matthew, with his third wife Orianne Cevey. The couple divorced in 2008.