BARBARA’S BACK IN THE RUNNING
She’s been performing since she was a teenager, but 74-year-old Barbara Dickson can’t wait to be back on tour after an enforced pandemic break
Woman – was postponed until this year because of Covid.
It certainly doesn’t look like Barbara has any intention of retiring – and prickles slightly at the mention of it. Barbara said: “If I was a painter no one would say at my age are you thinking of stopping painting.
“I’m not interested in being famous, I’m interested in doing good work. I want to keep working until I’m unable to work because of whatever...”
That work involves live shows – something she’s done since she was 16 – but have been curtailed for so many for so long now.
The rescheduled tour in March and April includes three dates in Scotland in Perth, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
She can’t wait to play the capital’s Usher Hall which is now a hometown gig for her and is keeping positive it will happen.
The new show will include songs from Time Is Going Faster which included her first original songs for some time.
She is ready to write for another album and has one song in the pipeline but needs to play the songs from Time Is Going Faster live before she feels she can move on.
She grimaced: “I feel slightly musically constipated. I really need to get these songs out there.”
The Fifer moved to Edinburgh as a teen and became a folk singer, releasing her first album The Fate o’Charlie with Archie Fisher in 1969. They followed it up with another album before she went solo in the 70s.
After meeting Willy Russell and performing the music for his musical John, Paul, George, Ringo...and Bert, Barbara became a mainstream star, and a resident on The Two Ronnies.
The 80s saw her pop star career, with hits like January February and her duet with Elaine Paige, I Know Him So Well.
In the 90s she had continued success in Kay Mellor’s gritty TV drama Band of Gold and on stage in Spend, Spend, Spend which saw her win an Olivier Award.
Barbara is the biggest-selling Scottish female album artist of all time, earning six platinum, 11 gold and seven silver albums.
Performing music is her first love. She said: “I’ve never stopped playing live even when I was in the theatre. Me with an audience is the very basis of what I do.” ●Barbara will play Perth Concert Hall on March 27, Edinburgh Usher Hall on March 30 and Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on March 31. Ticketline.co.uk