Phil Collins won't play drums on the Genesis reunion tour: 'I'm physically challenged a bit'

Phil Collins will be with Genesis bandmates Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford on their The Last Domino? Tour, their first tour in 14 years, but not in the way he would've hoped.

Collins' son, Nic, will serve as the band's drummer in his dad's place.

"I'm kind of physically challenged a bit, which is very frustrating because I'd love to be playing up there with my son," the 70-year-old Grammy-winning English rocker shared during an interview with BBC Breakfast.

When asked if he's able to "do any drumming at all these days," Collins said, "No. I'd love to, but I mean, I can barely hold a stick with this hand. So, there are certain physical things, which get it in the way."

Genesis initially announced the reunion tour in early March 2020. It was known then that Nic would take over the drums, but there was still some hope that Collins would be able to "play some bits on the tour."

Variety summed up Collins' health concerns as "a nerve problem in his left hand, hearing issues and [he] suffered a head injury in 2017 and a spinal injury in 2007," while the description of the BBC Breakfast interview cited "back problems following surgery."

Genesis hasn't performed in the United States since Turn It On Again: The Tour in 2007, which also marked Collins' return to the group after exiting in 1996 to go solo. Collins moved from drums to frontman duties in 1975, replacing Peter Gabriel.

"People always say, 'Why are you doing it?' First and foremost, it's what we do," Rutherford said. "You know, we always stay good friends, and I think it's a nice time to do it. Phil put it in a documentary quite well the other day, he said, 'We're kind of putting it to bed.' Which is a nice phrase. We've been 50 years doing this sort of stuff, and it's I think it's nice to sort of have a round like this."

Tour dates and tickets are available here.