The Charlatans‘ Tim Burgess has penned some words in loving memory of the band’s late keyboardist Rob Collins on the 30th anniversary of his death.
Collins was just 33-years-old when he died in car crash on July 22, 1996, just as the West Midlands indie heroes were nearing the peak of their fame. He was recruited to the band in the late ’80s where his layered, hypnotic and infectious organ playing helped form the backbone of their sound across five acclaimed and successful albums – setting them apart from much of the prevailing Madchester and Britpop acts of the time.
The band were recording their fifth album ‘Tellin’ Stories’ at the legendary Rockfield Stories in Monmouth in Wales when Collins died in a car crash just before sessions were completed. The UK music scene mourned the beloved musician, with Liam Gallagher dedicating ‘Cast No Shadow’ to the keyboardist when the band went on to support Oasis at Knebworth that summer.
Now, frontman Tim Burgess has written a tribute in honour of his late friend to mark three decades since his passing. Read it exclusively on NME below:
“Today marks the 30th anniversary of the day Rob Collins died. For six years, from 1990, The Charlatans had lived a charmed life, living our boyhood dreams as rock stars, travelling the world and enjoying the raucous ride. Real life occasionally reminded us that life could still be serious and harrowing – Rob had spent FOUR months in prison in 1993 after unwittingly driving an old acquaintance to and from a farcical armed robbery of an off licence – days after we got home from a Japanese tour.
“Chaos and mayhem followed Rob – but it had always been with a lightness and sense of fun. I saw him as the older brother that I never had – the first time I ever saw him was at The International 2 in Manchester – in his natural habitat, playing his Hammond organ, that seemed to be an extension of his soul – his feet moving as skilfully as any footballer with his left hand a blur, genius at work. As I always say, Rob was the best singer in The Charlatans and our voices worked well together, becoming a third thing – everything in harmony.”
The Charlatans’ Tim Burgess, Martin Blunt, Mark Collins, Jon Brookes, and Rob Collins in Belgium, 1994. (Photo by Gie Knaeps/Getty Images)
“Away from the glare of our lives in the band – we’d go on fishing trips together, often with Mani [The Stone Roses] – the three of us taking a break from the hectic lives that we’d all embraced – those hours by the lake were blissful.
“Rob was a master of his craft at such a young age. He was an inspiration when it came to songwriting. Between us all we wrote ‘Sproston Green’, ‘The Only One I Know’ and ‘Indian Rope’ in one weekend. We couldn’t quite believe how good they sounded. The world agreed and so many doors opened for us.
“Rob had a mental and physical toughness. He’d be the one facing up to any promoters who attempted to pull a fast one on the band, then he would grab a volunteer and carry his Hammond X5 up two flights of stairs, never breaking a sweat and without taking off his leather jacket and with a cigarette casually perched in the corner of his mouth.
“In 1991 Rob was voted the best keyboard player in the world by Rolling Stone Magazine.
“We thought those times would go on forever, but they came to an end on July 22, 1996 – and we have missed Rob every day since. Martin Duffy stepped in a couple of weeks later so that we could play at Knebworth – had we not played that gig, we might never have played again.
“I didn’t quite know how to handle Rob’s death. We lost our brother and the coolest person we knew. I vowed to always remind the world about him and it’s always a pleasure, with a veil of sadness, to write about him down the years.
“We knew deep down that we wanted to continue though and we’d heard about a guy called Tony Rogers. There aren’t many who could give Rob a run for his money on a Hammond but Tony absolutely could. Add in his backing vocals and songwriting skills and Tony became the perfect, and perhaps, only person who could take Rob’s place – that was 29 years ago and The Charlatans still tour the world and Rob is with us in spirit at each show and when we talk to Charlatans’ fans and friends that we’ve known down the years.
“Friends that we lose stay with us if we keep their memory alive.”
The Charlatans’ Rob Collins. Credit: Tom Sheehan
After Collins death, The Charlatans found further success and recorded a further nine albums – the latest being 2025’s ‘We Are Love‘.
Their debut album ‘Some Friendly’ was recently reissued on vinyl, with the band also confirmed to headline Rockaway Beach 2027. Burgess has also announced that he’ll be recording a live album straight to vinyl at Kendal Calling next month.
The post Tim Burgess on 30 years since the death of The Charlatans’ Rob Collins: “Friends that we lose stay with us if we keep their memory alive” appeared first on NME.
