The film has raised questions regarding the possibility of a reunion, although Phil seems to be giving some mixed messages about his ability to perform, given his physical ailments.

Phil has a problem drumming at the moment—that’s very much unchanged. Injuries at our age take three times as long to go away as when you’re younger, so that’s a problem for him, really. There are no plans, but I would never say never.

Apart from that, we spent a couple of days together and did the documentary—the original five—and it was great fun. So this whole journey of the book and then the documentary has been a nice reminder of how we still get on.

I went to see Pete last night at a show in London and we were saying that he left the band 39 years ago—that’s two-thirds of my life—and then, we’d discuss the parts like it was yesterday.

In your book, you describe him when he was younger as “slightly not-of-this-world.” Has that changed over time?

He lives a life, and thinks a life, a bit outside the box, which is why I think he’s done so well musically and culturally and humanitarian-wise. He was always a little bit outside the box. I think that’s one of his main strengths and he hasn’t changed really.

Genesis’ songwriting was quite unique from the start, and you explain that you pieced together the various band members’ contributions because you didn’t know any other way. Were there any groups you looked to for inspiration at the outset of your career?

No one really, maybe King Crimson a bit. In the Court of the Crimson King came out when we first started writing professionally and it was pretty impressive, but apart from that, we always quote our influences as The Beatles, the Stones and Motown—you can’t really hear it, but that’s where we came from.

We were just all strong writers and we pasted what we had together, like a collage. We weren’t really in control of it sometimes, and the results were surprising. That’s almost the charm, really. I think “Supper’s Ready,” which is on our Foxtrot album and was one side of the album, is probably one of our finest moments of doing that.