« Face Value »

The debut album Face Value was released on 13 February 1981 on the [l750] label internationally and [l681] in North America. The album topped the UK Album Chart on its initial release and was well–received by critics.

The idea behind the cover for the album was born out of the thought that Collins wanted to show what was going on inside his own head at the time. He felt that a close–up shot of his face would convey the emotion he was going for. Many of the songs were inspired by Collins’ first divorce. Collins has stated that he never intended to make a solo record; he was simply attempting to deal with the grief after his wife left him for another man. It wasn’t until he played the demo tapes for then [l681] owner [a253417] that he was told the songs were good enough to be released as an album. Other songs on the album are the up tempo [m