I can make more singing Devil Gate Drive today than I ever did in my 1970s heyday

Rock star SUZI QUATRO had so little money after signing her first big record deal she used to sneak into pub kitchens and stuff chicken into her pockets to survive. Quatro, now 68, also bought hotpot from cafés because it only cost 40p in the 1970s and that was all she could afford. Now, she lives in a mansion and enjoys first-class travel and £100 bottles of wine. She can command up to £60,000 for a half-hour performance and has earned more over the past 10 years than she ever did in the 1970s and 1980s. Next year, she performs her hits as part of a UK tour with David Essex.

What did your parents teach you about money?

Not to waste it. I grew up in an affluent neighbourhood in Detroit, but my father had two jobs to enable us to live there. He worked at General Motors in the day and was a musician at night. My mother was a housewife. They had five children and took in nine orphans through the years. My mother had to be thrifty and I am her daughter all the way – acutely aware of how I spend my money.

What was the first paid work you ever did?

At age 14, I did my first gig with band The Pleasure Seekers at a local dancehall. We got paid something like $25 that night and that was the first money I ever earned. With my father’s permission, I left school the following year and went on the road. I’ve been doing the same job ever since.

Have you ever struggled to make ends meet?

Yes. When I first came to England at age 21 I lived on a shoestring. I had been discovered by record producer Mickie Most. He gave me an advance – not a lot – and my family told me to give them half. I did not want to but I was emotionally blackmailed. They said I had debts, that I owed it to them. It was not a nice situation.

I could have asked Mickie for more but I was a little bit proud. He had no idea I had left half my advance behind at home. So I saved money whenever I could, walking everywhere and eating meagrely. I remember finding a café which sold hotpot for 40p and buying that all the time.

If things got really bad I would go to a pub with one of the record company guys, go into the kitchen, grab some chicken and stuff it in my back pocket. It is not like I was the Artful Dodger – I was just too proud to ask for more money.

Have you ever been paid silly money?

Yes. I am a worldwide star so of course I have been highly paid – sometimes ridiculously so. The silliest money I ever earned was for performing at a private birthday party as a surprise for a big fan who had a lot of money in Russia. I was paid between £50,000 and £60,000 – and was on stage for just half an hour.

What was the best year of your financial life?

It was 2014 when I celebrated my 50th anniversary in the business. I did gigs everywhere and there was a four-CD boxset that came out called

The Girl From Detroit City. I have earned more in the last 10 years than I did in the 1970s and 1980s.

What is the most expensive thing you bought for fun?

A mink fur coat in 1975 – before it became politically incorrect. It cost £5,500 but I really wanted one, so I bought the best. I still have it. It was handmade and it is still so luxurious. I love that you can go out naked in the snow in it and still feel warm.

Best money decision?

Buying my home in 1980 for £120,000. I have not had it valued for a long time but I am sure it is worth millions of pounds. It is a 15th century Elizabethan manor house in the Essex countryside.

Do you save into a pension or invest in the stock market?

No. I am not interested, do not understand it and am not going to pretend I do. I have plenty of money in the bank to live on in my old age.

Do you own any property?

I own the house my daughter lives in and the flat my son resides in. I also own half of a Spanish holiday villa.

What is your little luxury treat?

I like my comforts – first-class travel, junior suites in hotels – and I enjoy a bottle of fine wine. I get drunk easy so you could say I am a cheap date, but it has got to be a good wine. I will frequently spend £100 on a bottle.

Do you donate money to charity?

Yes I do, but that is private. I do not talk about that publicly.

What is your No.1 financial priority?

To enjoy my life with what I have left.