Continued from page 40
IE: After the group's self-titled debut came
out, were you able to keep your identity a
secret any longer or did it get out pretty
quick?
MR: Pretty quick, but you know to this
day, I meet guys who say 'you're with Mike
+ the Mechanics?' People don't know
sometimes. And I meet guys who say 'oh,
you're with Genesis,' but they really don't
quite know who's who. It's kind of okay
too. You're in the [industry] world so you
know, but basically I believe people just
like songs they like.
IE: You talk about fame and your family
almost equally throughout your memoir
and seem like a really relatable person.
How have you managed to stay so grounded throughout all of your success?
MR: …Being in a band with guys you went
to school with since age 14, it's kind of hard
to act badly because they'll say "Oh, well,
what do you know?" You can't sort of carry
a grudge around. And the other thing is
being married to Angie for 38 years. It all
sort of somewhat keeps me on the ground,
you know?
IE: How often do you get asked about
Genesis reunion prospects, regardless of
the line-up?
MR: Every interview of course (chuckle).
There are no plans. The [BBC turned DVD]
documentary [Sum Of The Parts] was fun to
do. I really enjoyed spending time with
Peter [Gabriel], Phil [Collins], Tony [Banks]
and Steve [Hackett]. It was just nice to
remember all the good times, but there are
no plans at the moment. I've always said,
you know, we're friends and we've
remained friends, but there are no plans to.
Mike + The Mechanics appear at Park
West (www.jamusa.com) on Friday, March
20 and Saturday, March 21.
52 illinoisentertainer.com march 2015