Phil Collins didn't want you to hear it. Honestly. The man who defined the 1980s with a gated reverb drum fill and a collection of beige jackets almost threw away his biggest solo hit. We're talking about Phil Collins Take a Look at Me Now—better known to the world as "Against All Odds."
It’s the song that plays when the lights go up at a wedding and everyone’s a little too drunk. Or the one that soundtracks a rainy drive home after a breakup. But the story behind it isn't just a simple tale of a guy with a piano. It’s a weirdly messy saga involving a forgotten demo, a movie that wasn't very good, and a performance at the Oscars that became a legendary snub.
The Song That Almost Didn't Exist
Back in 1981, Phil was going through it. His first wife, Andrea Bertorelli, had left, taking the kids and the dogs. Phil was stuck in a big, empty house in West Surrey, surrounded by recording gear and a massive amount of hurt. This era gave us the legendary Face Value album.
He wrote a little demo called "How Can You Just Sit There?" while he was tinkering at the piano.
It was raw. It was pained. And Phil? He thought it was garbage.
Well, maybe not garbage, but he definitely didn't think it was good enough for his debut album. He shelved it. He literally put the tape in a box and forgot about it while "In the Air Tonight" was busy conquering the planet.
Three years later, director Taylor Hackford comes knocking. He’s making a neo-noir film called Against All Odds starring Jeff Bridges and Rachel Ward. He needs a theme song. Phil is on tour with Genesis, he’s exhausted, and he tells Hackford he doesn't have time to write something new.
But then he remembers the demo.
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Phil Collins Take a Look at Me Now: The 1984 Juggernaut
Phil dug out that old tape, polished the lyrics to fit the film’s themes of obsession and lost love, and recorded it in a frantic two-day session. He didn't even play the piano on the final version; that was New York session man Rob Mounsey. Phil handled the vocals and that explosive drum entry toward the end.
The result? His first-ever #1 single in the U.S.
The song Phil Collins Take a Look at Me Now didn't just top the charts. It stayed there. It defined a specific brand of "divorce pop" that made Phil the most successful artist of the decade. People often forget that by the mid-80s, Phil Collins had more Top 40 hits than almost anyone else, including Michael Jackson.
Why the title is so confusing
If you look at the record sleeve, it’s officially titled "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)." Most people just search for the "Take a look at me now" part because it's the emotional hook of the chorus. It’s that desperate plea. It’s the sound of someone standing in an empty doorway, realization hitting them like a ton of bricks.
The Oscar Snub and the "Awkward" Performance
You’d think a #1 hit would get some respect.
When the song was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1985, the Academy did something incredibly petty. They didn't invite Phil to perform it.
Instead, they hired a dancer and actress named Ann Reinking to perform a lip-synced, choreographed version of the song while Phil sat in the front row. The cameras kept cutting to him. He looked... well, he looked like a guy who had just been told his dog died. He was visibly annoyed.
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He later joked that he wasn't invited because he wasn't "movie" enough. But honestly, it remains one of the most famously uncomfortable moments in Oscar history. He eventually got his revenge by winning a Grammy for the song, and decades later, he finally got his Oscar for Tarzan.
The 2016 "Take a Look at Me Now" Retrospective
Fast forward to 2016. Phil had retired, then un-retired, then dealt with some pretty serious health issues that made it impossible for him to drum. He launched a massive reissue campaign for his entire solo catalog.
The name of the campaign? Take a Look at Me Now.
This wasn't just a clever nod to the song. It was a visual statement. Phil went back and re-shot every single one of his iconic album covers—Face Value, No Jacket Required, ...But Seriously—using his current, older face.
It was a bold move. Most artists want to be remembered as they were at 25. Phil wanted you to see the lines on his face. He wanted the fans to see the man who survived the 80s, the 90s, and the tabloids. It was a way of saying, "Yeah, I'm still here. Take a look."
Why the Song Still Hits Today
There’s a reason Mariah Carey covered it. There’s a reason it’s been in everything from The Fall Guy to The Office. It’s a perfect power ballad.
- The Build-up: It starts with just that lonely piano.
- The Vulnerability: Phil’s voice sounds like it’s about to crack in the first verse.
- The Drums: When the drums finally kick in, it’s not a celebration. It’s an explosion of frustration.
Most pop songs of that era were about "we're gonna make it" or "I'm so in love." Phil wrote about the empty space. He wrote about the silence after the door closes.
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The Mariah Carey and Westlife Versions
In 2000, Mariah Carey teamed up with Westlife for a version that hit #1 in the UK. It was much more "produced," much glossier. But it lacked that weird, gritty desperation of the original. Phil’s version feels like a demo that got out of hand in the best possible way.
Common Misconceptions
People often think this was a Genesis song. It wasn't. While Mike Rutherford and Peter Gabriel actually appeared on the Against All Odds movie soundtrack with their own tracks, this was purely Phil.
Another myth? That he wrote it for the movie. As we’ve seen, the music was already three years old. He just "Frankensteined" it to fit the script. It’s proof that sometimes your "leftover" ideas are actually your best ones.
How to Experience it Now
If you want to dive into the Phil Collins Take a Look at Me Now era properly, don't just stream the radio edit.
- Listen to the 2016 Remaster: It cleans up the low end and makes those drums sound massive.
- Watch the Live Aid performance: Phil played this song at Wembley Stadium in London, hopped on a Concorde, and played it again in Philadelphia on the same day. He actually messed up a piano note in London because he was so nervous/tired.
- Read 'Not Dead Yet': Phil’s autobiography goes into the grueling detail of the divorce that sparked the song. It's surprisingly funny and very honest.
The song is more than a meme or a karaoke staple. It’s a reminder that even when things are "against all odds," we’re usually just looking for someone to look back at us and acknowledge what we lost.
Go back and listen to the version from Serious Hits... Live! recorded in 1990. It’s arguably better than the studio version because you can hear 15,000 people holding their breath. That’s the power of Phil.
Check out the 2016 "Extra Value" bonus disc from the Face Value reissue to hear the original "How Can You Just Sit There?" demo and see how far the song actually came from its humble, heartbroken beginnings.