Illegal Alien (song)

The song's lyrics are a satirical[2] depiction of the frustrations an illegal Mexican immigrant faces in coming to the United States, leading up to the chorus: "It's no fun being an illegal alien." [3] The second stanza of the bridge — in which the trespasser offers sexual favors from his sister in exchange for admittance across the border — was edited from radio versions of the song, as well as from the music video version. Writing a quarter-century after its release Wired Magazine's Scott Thill called the video "a train wreck" [4].

Phil Collins played trumpet and Tony Banks used an Emulator sampler while recording the song.

The song's music video depicts most of the events described in the lyrics. At the end of the video, the entire cast and crew is seen singing the repeated chorus along with the band members. The clip was filmed at the same time as the video for "Mama".

"Illegal Alien" was only played live in its entirety during the Mama Tour.[5] A live version is featured on disc two of Genesis Archive 2: 1976–1992, which was recorded live at the L.A. Forum, Los Angeles, California on 14 January 1984. The home video The Mama Tour features a live version of the song performed at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, England, in February 1984.

An excerpt from the chorus was included as part of the "Old Medley" featured on The Way We Walk, Volume Two: The Longs and The Way We Walk - Live in Concert.

7" Single

1. "Illegal Alien" (4:33)
2. "Turn It On Again" (Live) (5:24)

12" maxi

1. "Illegal Alien" (5:14)
2. "Turn It On again" (Live extended version) (9:26)

• Phil Collins – drums, percussion, vocals, trumpet
• Tony Banks – keyboards, backing vocals
• Mike Rutherford – guitars, bass guitar, backing vocals

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics