We all feel it coming (in the air tonight)

In the last couple weeks I heard the Phil Collins' song "In the Air Tonight" twice. Once on the clock radio one morning while getting dressed for work, and then once while standing in a downtown McDonald's restaurant, playing over the speakers in the lobby. In both instances when it got to that part of the song—and unless you've never heard the song, you know exactly what I mean by that part of the song—I could not help but respond.

When the big drum fill kicked in (at 3:41 into the song), I had to air drum on invisible toms hanging in the air. (Well, in the McDonald's I only tapped my foot on each hit and tapped my hands in my pant pockets, but I did move it from left to right to approximate the relative positions of the toms in a drum kit.) In neither case did I consciously decide to perform this; in my mind it's as automatic as blinking to be moved to that action by that part of the song. The shifting dynamics of the track operate on an unconscious level. Frankly, it would take specific effort to prevent myself from initiating some drum-related response in that moment.

Then recently I saw a commercial for the upcoming movie The Hangover. One of the featured scenes in the trailer shows the protagonists in a Las Vegas hotel suite with Mike Tyson (yes, the Mike Tyson). In the background "In the Air Tonight" plays. And then Tyson says "Wait, I love this part" and when the drum fill starts he launched into air drumming that concludes with him punching one of the protagonists; he's simply too caught up in the moment to control himself. Not that "Iron Mike" is known for his self control, admittedly, but this is not animalistic rage—it's the power of music.

I'm sure the joke is supposed to be the seeming incongruity of the brutish reputation of the former heavyweight champ played against the cool temperament suggested by the Genesis singer/drummer. How silly that Mike Tyson would like that song!

No. The humor stems from the unspoken truth revealed in that scene. Even if you don't like that song overall you love that part of the song. Heck, even if you like the song, you still are essentially putting up with the rest of the song as prelude to that sequence.

In the scene, presumably the only reason the protagonists don't respond similarly is because they're scared shitless by Tyson. But that doesn't mean they don't have the impulse to join in; they merely allow their fear to suppress the physical manifestation everyone is inclined to do (whether you've ever bitten off another man's ear or not).

I don't plan on seeing the movie, because the rest of the trailer leaves me completely unimpressed, but I must applaud that bit. Whether the rest of the film is as lame as I suspect or is actually funny, the makers did get one thing right: There is no resisting the most important few seconds of drumming Phil Collins ever laid down.

~

You'll notice I call it a "drum fill" and not a "drum solo." There's a simple reason: It's not a solo.

It's not.