The critics are wrong...this album is not the same as its predecesors. 'Face Value' and 'Hello I Must Be Going' are strikingly similar, and album #3, 'No Jacket Required,' is pure crap in my opinion save one song, the last one. But this album isn't just mindless pop like his previous albums--this is a classic. 'Find a Way to My Heart' is the best song he ever did...'Sussudio' may have horns like 'Hang in Long Enough,' but the latter is a FAR better song...'That's Just the Way it Is,' 'I Wish it Would Rain Down,' 'All of My Life,' are all great, great songs. My advice for anyone who wishes to hear the best of Phil Collins...don't waste your money on 'Hits'...order the 'In the Air Tonight' single and this album. That's all you need.

Phil Collins took a lot of critical heat for making this album, 1989's "But Seriously." Apparently, the critics just couldn't handle the idea of Phil Collins, of all singers, singing songs about the problems in Northern Ireland ("That's Just The Way It Is"), South Africa ("Colours"), the homeless ("Another Day In Paradise"), etc. I say too bad for them, and three cheers to Phil. He made a great album. Besides, not ALL of the songs here are political, for Heaven's sake. And as for the political ones, they're good songs! There's nothing wrong with a recording artist taking some risks every now and then, even if that artist's name is Phil Collins. Phil gets things up and roaring with the great brassy blast of "Hang In Long Enough," and the great tunes keep on coming, such as the quiet beauty of "That's Just The Way It Is" & "Do You Remember," and the fun of "Something Happened On The Way To Heaven." The most controversial song on the album, the South Africa-inspired "Colours," is arguably the most adventurous track Phil has ever done, and, with some very strong shifts in mood throughout, as well as some very heartfelt lyrics, Phil pulls it off. The uplifting sing-along vibe of "I Wish It Would Rain Down" is next, followed by the brilliantly powerful, Grammy-winning classic "Another Day In Paradise," one of Phil's most haunting tunes, which kicks off the second half of equally-great songs in fine fashion, including "All Of My Life" and "Father To Son." Phil's singing, songwriting, playing & arranging is first rate, and he gets excellent help from the likes of Eric Clapton, David Crosby, Steve Winwood & Stephen Bishop, as well as the expert "usual suspects" on Phil's team, including guitarist Daryl Stuermer, bassist Leeland Sklar and the Earth, Wind & Fire horn section.With the release of his previous album, 1985's mega-smash "No Jacket Required," Phil got unfairly put into a box of some sort by the music media, labeled "Top 40 Hits." With "But Seriously," Phil climbed out of that box (at least to a certain extent) and got chastised for it. 13 years later, though, the album holds up. "But Seriously" shows not only the serious side to Phil, but also his gutsy side in tackling stronger subject matter than, say, "Sussudio." Hey, I like a good pop song, but I also like it when a so-called "Top 40" artist branches out a little bit, which Phil Collins most certainly did with this fine disc.

It would seem that it would be very hard for Phil Collins to top at critical and commercial success like "No Jacket Required" (1985 Grammy for Album of the Year), but Phil manages to do that with his fourth studio album "...But Seriously". On this particular album, Phil changes directions quite a bit. He abandons part of the formula that worked for the first three albums. Instead of focusing (entirely) on his personal relationships, the dark psychedelic element, and the fun element - Phil takes a much more "serious" approach. On this album he explores socio-economic and political themes. He doesn't abandon the relationship theme, but on this album he takes a more mature and reflective approach to the relationships he is involved in. Usually when artists take a change in direction like this, they are criticized - but for Phil Collins the new formula truly works. This album didn't win the Grammy, but in my opinion this late 1989 release would be the impact album for 1990 - and thus gets my nod for the Best Album of 1990.

The horn element is still present on this album. This has been a staple of Phil Collins' career. There are six songs containing the Phenix Horns and one additional song ("All of My Life") that has a Saxaphone. This is roughly about the same percentage as he used the Horns on "No Jacket Required". Like "No Jacket Required", the guitar and bass influence remains - along with the keyboard element that was introduced on "Hello, I Must Be Going". One difference is that this album doesn't quite have the "thundering" Phil Collins percussions that the previous albums had.

Phil also brings some guest stars to this album. I've never been a David Crosby fan. In fact, when I heard that Crosby was going to be on this album, I was skeptical. However - Crosby is terrific as he does background vocals on "Another Day in Paradise" and "That's Just the Way It Is". Eric Clapton provides guitar on "I Wish It Would Rain Down" and Steve Winwood provides Hammond Organ on "All of My Life".

This album is terrific from Top to Bottom. Here is a synopsis:

"Hang in Long Enough" - terrific horns in this song. This is a song where we see some of the sociological elements that Phil brings as Phil provides "advice" for someone looking to take the next step and make it big.

"That's Just the Way It Is" - is one of the David Crosby background vocal songs. This song discusses the theme of fighting and war. Phil's line "If we agree that we can disagree" tells it all.

"Do You Remember" - This is a classic Phil collins ballad. This was one of the singles released from the album. It's a good song, but I'd also consider this the weakest track on the album.

"Something Happened on the Way To Heaven" - Not as "serious" as many of the other tracks and probably is the only true "throwback" song to the older albums. This is another great horn based song that Phil reflects on a love (possibly his own) gone bad.

"Colours" - This is the best song on the album and possibly the best song that Phil has ever done. Phil makes a political statement in this song as he presents an anti-apartheid stance. Great horns, great lyrics. This is a near 9 minute song (so radio in their great wisdom (chuckle) shied away away from that). It is a two part song. The first 2 1/2 minutes has a soft tone, then the song moves into a African percussion that leads to the horn based part. Collins is very vocal about his feelings as he sends a direct message to (then) South African President PW Botha.

"I Wish It Would Rain Down" - This was a very overplayed song on the radio, but it is a very underrated song. Phil gives a very powerful vocal performance. What I find most interesting his how Phil fuses his vocals and percussion with a blues based guitar (played by Eric Clapton) with a gospel choir in the background. Again Phil takes a reflective approach to relationships.

"Another Day in Paradise" - This won the Grammy for "Record of the Year". Crosby is terrific with the vocals. In this song, Phil explores the plight of the homeless.

"Heat on the Street" - This is a hidden gem of a song. Great horn based song. This is more another socio as Phil explores themes of different socio-economic classes and socio-political differences between the "everyday" people and the "decision makers" in our society.

"All of My Life" - Another hidden gem. This is a softer sound. Steve Winwood plays Hammond Organ and it really has Winwood feel to it. It is one song that has some of the classic thundering drums of Phil.

"Saturday Night and Sunday Morning" - A short, but great instrumental with Phil and the Phenix Horns.

"Father to Son" - A ballad in which Phil gives advice to his son based on the mistakes he made in his life and relationships.

"Find a Way to My Heart" - This is the finale. It's not quite the finale that "Take Me Home" was on "No Jacket Required", but its still a fitting finale song. This combines the Phil Collins ballad with an African percussion followed by some great horn work -great stuff.

As for the liner notes - it comes packaged very well. All of the songs with the lyrics and musician credits are listed. I like how the credits are in one section of the booklet and the lyrics are in the other section. The only real drawback is that on like other albums, the Phil Collins' style handwriting makes things difficult to read. Overall for this album,Phil delivers his best work. The bar was truly raised high on this collection from Phil Collins.

In 1989, only a year after releasing 12"ERS, Phil Collins released his fifth album entitled, ...BUT SERIOUSLY. This album is SERIOUSLY an amazing album, focusing on songs that deal with the serious aspects of life, such as the poor as on "Another Day In Paradise", and a lost relationship on "I Wish It Would Rain Down".

HANG IN LONG ENOUGH
This was one of the greatest songs to start this album off. The message in the song has been used many times over the years. That message is just simply taking great advice and making it big in life. In 1990, a year after this song, the all-girl group WILSON PHILLIPS would go on to record a song with this same message. That song was their hit single, "Hold On".

THAT'S JUST THE WAY IT IS
Terrific song.

DO YOU REMEMBER
A great ballad. Phil's ballads are outstanding.

SOMETHING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO HEAVEN
Apparently, this is the only song on the album that is not considered to be SERIOUS. I guess Phil wanted to have a little fun, where this song describes a love gone bad. Is it about a love Phil had once had? Who's to say?

COLOURS
An amazing ballad, and possible Phil's longest song reaching over eight minutes. One hell of a tune.

I WISH IT WOULD RAIN DOWN
When I heard this song for the first time, I loved it. The music is just outstanding, complete with Phil's incredible vocals, a gospel choir, and Eric Clapton on guitars. I am not a fan Eric Clapton's, but his guitar playing is great on this track.

ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE
This is yet another great Phil Collins song that you will definitely hear quite often on radio stations. In this song, Phil goes into the depths of the needy and the homeless.

HEAT ON THE STREET
A great song, separating your usual people of the world from socio-misfits.

ALL MY LIFE
Great.

SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING
Nothing special. Just an instrumental piece here.

FATHER TO SON
A song where Phil gives advice to his own son. My advice is that all fathers should learn from this song and pass on advice to their own sons.

FIND A WAY TO MY HEART
A great way to end this SERIOUS album.

...BUT SERIOUSLY had to have been Phil Collins' greatest album since that of HELLO, I MUST BE GOING! & NO JACKET REQUIRED. The seriousness to this album is so intense that you could feel it. Great album all the way.

Whether you are a big fan of Phil Collins, or you thought Phil Collins was just some ridiculous 80's phony popstar, I would recommend you give But Seriously a listen. Of course, if you are a fan, then you probably already have heard this album a thousand times and agree with me, but if you are the latter, you will be surprised at how intense and how artisitic this album is.

Up until 1989 Phil dominated both TV and radio airwaves with his suave and cool music videos and songs, ranging from the sweet rock coolness of In The Air Tonight to the bubbly pop of Two Hearts. But Seriously gave Phil a new credibility. Here he is more than just that, he is a perfectionist artist.

The first single showed, for the first time, Phil Collins singing a different tune from his past hits, a song about the poor and homeless, Another Day In Paradise. The song became a worldwide anthem that year sparking repeated airplay and earning the grammy for best song. For many, this song is the highlight of the album. But in truth, its just one of a lot of hightlights. Actually, the entire album was the highlight of the moment.
The maturity of That's Just The Way It Is, Father To Son, and All Of My Life can easily cast over Another Day In Paradise. The sweet love ballad Do You Remember?, which appears in the soundtrack of Nicholas Cage's 1990 bomb Fire Birds, is deliciously good. The chilling rock epic I Wish It Would Rain Down that features guitar work from Eric Clapton dawns as a remarkable highlight on the album. Colors follows in the theme of Another Day In Paradise as a moment to give a thought to the poor and homeless. The album's closer Find A Way To My Heart, another track that was featured in the soundtrack to the Nicholas Cage flop Fire Birds, is an excellent pick for the closing of such a genuine album. The song opens up with some really cool electronic sounds and then slowly escalates and progresses into one big bang of a song.

Phil Collins still is around today, still making music but nothing as good as But Seriously. You might still think his earlier stuff from the early 80's was amazing, but seriously, this is Phil Collins' best album!

A+