The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Vintage line-up of class acts
On Monday, Midge Ure will grace the Caird Hall’s stage along with The Christians and Altered Images lead singer Clare Grogan, as part of their UK-wide tour featuring some of their classic hits
The 80s is the musical decade that just keeps on giving.
While outdoor retro events like Rewind Scotland have seized much of the limelight for fans of pop’s most colourful decade in recent years, the number of package tours featuring the stars of the day has mushroomed.
Still producing relevant new music more than 40 years after his first number one with Slik, Midge Ure is joining the party by performing 30 shows in UK theatres and concert halls to promote his forthcoming album, Orchestrated.
The Ultravox legend will give fans a preview of new electronic reworkings of epics such as Vienna, Dancing With Tears In My Eyes and If I Was when he plays Dundee on Monday.
“I didn’t want an album of just the original versions with some strings stuck on top, because that gets done to death and I thought that was incredibly boring,” explains Midge, 63.
“So the whole idea is to take some of the songs and to do something completely different with them, to rearrange or reimagine them. There’s no point in just bringing something out that sounds exactly the same as it did 35 years ago except it’s got an orchestra on it.
“Take it and do something new and fresh and exciting with it.”
Giving bumper value to Monday’s bill are Midge’s fellow Glaswegian Clare Grogan, and Liverpool soulsters The Christians. But despite relishing her longest tour since 2004, the Altered Images singer can’t ignore domestic life for long. “It’s been a bit more hectic than I expected,” Clare admits.
“I’ve tried to design it so that I can get home as often as I can. The only night I haven’t been back home yet was when we played Glasgow at the start.
“I drive home to London straight after the shows so that I can get my daughter up and out to school in the morning.
“I try to look after myself and try to get some sleep at night but I just have to keep going.
It’s my choice and it’s the choice a lot of working parents make.”
Enjoying special guest status, the Gregory’s Girl star is being backed by a new line-up put together for the tour. “It’s daunting but it’s good fun as well, just getting to know people and making it work,” she says.
“Fortunately they’re amazing musicians so it’s coming together.
“It can be quite tough on a rainy Tuesday night but nobody’s going to take a run at it more than me. I love the idea of winning everyone over from the first song on, and it seems to be working.
“The audiences that come along are really enthusiastic and just out to have a good time.”
Clare, 55, insists it wasn’t easy picking her setlist. “People sometimes forget that we had so many hits, it wasn’t just about Happy Birthday,” she says.
“I’m playing six of our old hits plus Dead Pop Stars which was our first single but sadly got pulled on the day it was released because that was the day John Lennon died.
“I’m also doing a song I wrote for the television series Skins, called Don’t Give Up Girl. It’s kind of a mantra — just to survive 30 years in this business you have to keep reminding yourself that it’s worth it.”
Altered Images played Dundee in the early 80s and Clare says she’s looking forward to returning. “I think the second ever gig we did was in Dundee at the university union,” she recalls.
“I’m sure I’ve also played at Fat Sams but it’s been a very long time. The last time I was in Dundee was to promote one of my Tallulah books a few years ago. Even then the difference in the city since I’d been there before was incredible so I’m very excited about going back.”
I love the idea of winning everyone over from the first song on