Phil Collins, Solo, in a Paul Simon Bag

Through the years Collins’ work has grown increasingly less important; one expects him eventually simply to float out of view, like one of those forlorn balloons that disappears into the sky after escaping from its brethren at a birthday party or a bar mitzvah.

But Collins isn’t going quietly. On his first solo album since his official departure from Genesis, he ambitiously mixes African rhythms with his usual American-as-apple-pie (yes, we know he’s British) pop. What results is a sort of “Graceland” lite, for most of the tracks are too timid in their incorporation of the foreign song mannerisms to stake out much of a distinctive sound.

Perhaps it’s just as well. The best numbers on “Dance Into the Light” are those with few pretensions other than having fun. On the dizzyingly tuneful “That’s What You Said” and the equally hummable “It’s in Your Eyes,” Collins makes us wistful for what might have been: Had he sought his inspiration for the entire album from the Beatles circa 1965 rather than Paul Simon circa 1986, “Dance Into the Light” might have lived up to its title. As it is, we’re left--as usual--with admiring Collins’ drumming.

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