Mel Collins

Mel Collins is exactly the sort of musician I geek out over, the indispensable player whose name fans of progressive rock know cold even if the wider world doesn't. A saxophonist and flautist from Banstead who joined King Crimson twice, decades apart, and spent the late seventies in Camel. That return to Crimson from 2013 says something about how vital his voice remained. To me he's the consummate session lifer, the texture and color behind countless records, and I respect that kind of career far more than fleeting fame. Pure musicianship, sustained for a lifetime.

Melvyn Desmond Collins (born 5 September 1947) is a British saxophonist, flautist and session musician. Collins has played in several progressive rock groups, most notably being a member of King Crimson on two occasions (the first from 1970 to 1972 and the second from 2013 to 2021) and Camel (from 1976 to 1979).

Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Name (English)

Mel Collins

Name (Japanese)

メル・コリンズ

Reading

める・こりんず

Born

September 5, 1947 (age 78)

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Virgo / Boar

Origin

Banstead, United Kingdom

Blood type

Private

Height

Private

Agency

Private

Occupation

saxophonist / composer

Elementary school

Private

Junior high

Private

High school

Private

University

Private

Spouse

Private

Children

Private

Parents

Private

Siblings

Private

Motto

Private

• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%A1%E3%83%AB%E3%83%BB%E3%82%B3%E3%83%AA%E3%83%B3%E3%82%BA

Tags

• saxophonist
• composer

Last updated

2026-06-02

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.