I can never play the drums again says Phil Collins

Phil Collins today revealed he will never drum again because he is suffering from a painful spine injury.

The former Genesis star can't even hold his sticks after years of sitting in front of a drumkit.

Too many hits: Playing has left Phil Collins in agony

Collins, 58, whose hits include In The Air Tonight, said: "After playing drums for 50 years, I've had to stop. My vertebrae have been crushing my spinal cord because of the position I drum in.

"It comes from years of playing. I can't even hold the sticks properly without it being painful, I even used to tape the sticks to my hands to get through."

But this is not the end of his music career, as Collins told fans: "Don't worry, I can still sing." He also hinted that the Prince's Trust series of all-star rock concerts could be resurrected.

The Prince's Trust Rock Gala was held for the first time in 1983 at London's Dominion Theatre. A show held five years later at the Royal Albert Hall was recently released on DVD, and Collins has been watching it with his children.

The concerts featured performers including Collins, Eric Clapton, Sir Elton John, Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits, The Bee Gees and Ultravox's Midge Ure.

Collins said there had been discussions about reviving the Prince's Trust concerts. Speaking at a celebrity reception hosted by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall at Highgrove, he said: "It's fantastic to see Bryan Adams here today, he performed too, but there was a core group, the house band, which was me, Eric, Elton, Sting, Midge and Mark Knopfler.

Early days: Phil with his Genesis bandmates

"I think there is talk of trying to do another one. We built up a live reputation, but people don't wait to see people live now like they used to.

"There is music on tonnes of television channels and that means we hear a record constantly for a month and then don't hear from the act."