Q&A

The former Spandau Ballet singer talks about his career and his gig in the capital

You’ve been to the UAE a few times before, haven’t you? I have, I’ve performed in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai before. This is my third trip to the capital. This time you’re playing at a food festival – are you a foodie? I love food. Some of my best meals have been in Italy. We were recently in Alassio, which is basically Italy’s Riviera, and the dishes were simply stunning. Italian chefs do even simple dishes really well, such as grilled fish or spaghetti bolognaise. What can people expect from your set in Abu Dhabi? I have a new album coming out in the spring, so we might play some of that, along with Spandau Ballet hits and some cover versions. My set is a real mix. I love to cover songs by the Kaiser Chiefs or The Killers, I like to surprise people with tracks they don’t expect me to do. But you’ll be singing the classics, like Gold? When you’ve got a history going back to 1980, and songs that mean a lot to people, you have to perform them. People say Gold got me through a tough time. I don’t dwell in the past but I don’t ignore it – you have to give people what they want. You’ve also had success as a solo artist I’ve toured with rock star Alice Cooper and Jon Anderson of [1970s prog rock band] Yes. I’m going to South America soon to perform with a Mexican opera singer. I’ve performed with people like James Brown and Joe Cocker, been on stage with Freddie Mercury of Queen. He gave me a lot of advice as a singer. What did you learn from Freddie? He’d say, “When you’re on stage, never apologise for anything. They want to see you, they don’t want you saying, ‘Sorry, my voice isn’t up to scratch today.’” I’ve heard artists say that before. Never say that – own the stage. If you could relive one day from your career, which would it be? Live Aid back in 1985 – 100 per cent. And I’d do it differently. Amazingly, we didn’t play Gold, which is crazy, so I would go back and experience that day and make sure we performed it. It was an incredible day, I got to meet so many of my heroes.