Songfacts®:

• This was released as the third single from Face Value in the UK, but was never released as a single in the United States.
• Like many of the songs on Face Value, this is based on Collins' anger and frustration about his first wife Andrea leaving him for a painter and decorator. He told The Mail on Sunday: "One of my favorite songs. It was so simple and yet said so much about how I felt at the time… the main chorus line being a real truism."
• The song features Eric Clapton on guitar. Collins commented to The Mail on Sunday that, "we were both a little the worse for wear." The legendary guitarist also contributed to another Collins song "I Wish It Would Rain Down" several years later.
• Collins performed the song on the BBC music show Top of the Pops with a bucket of paint and paintbrush on top of his electric piano, a reference to his first wife's affair with a painter and decorator.
• Collins stopped performing this live early in his solo career; audiences would often scream during the song, which he felt clashed with the mood the song required. >>>

  Suggestion credit:
  Mitchell - Liverpool, UK