The superstar, 77, urged emerging musicians to “go play in a pub” instead — even if it’s empty.
In an interview to mark the release of his latest album he told them: “Just keep trying to play live. That’s the way you improve as a musician and song-writer. It doesn’t matter if you're playing to 40 people. The more experience you get playing to nobody, the better.
“Because when I played in Musicology, we played to hardly anybody sometimes. That experience stood me in great stead because I had backbone. And backbone is so important, because the worst thing that can happen to you in the industry are things like X Factor and instant fame on television where you have no experience of playing live.
“You get put on stage, you go and you can’t do it. That’s the worst thing. American Idol — just the worst. Take risks. Go and play in a pub.”
The British icon is known for championing new a...
In an interview to mark the release of his latest album he told them: “Just keep trying to play live. That’s the way you improve as a musician and song-writer. It doesn’t matter if you're playing to 40 people. The more experience you get playing to nobody, the better.
“Because when I played in Musicology, we played to hardly anybody sometimes. That experience stood me in great stead because I had backbone. And backbone is so important, because the worst thing that can happen to you in the industry are things like X Factor and instant fame on television where you have no experience of playing live.
“You get put on stage, you go and you can’t do it. That’s the worst thing. American Idol — just the worst. Take risks. Go and play in a pub.”
The British icon is known for championing new a...
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Daily Express (Digital) - 1 Issue, March 21, 2025