I'm all tours

from The Daily Record - 2 August 2005

Texas play all over Scotland in one day and take the Razz along for the ride

QUARTER past eight in the morning is not a conventional time to play a gig But when you are squeezing in three live performances across the length and breadth of Scotland in nine hours, you need to start early.

Scots group Texas hit the road yesterday on a mission to play live and meet fans in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow and the Razz was with them every step of the way. They were playing Virgin Megastores in the cities to mark the release of Getaway - their first single in 18 months.

There were Abba singalongs in the car, tea and crisps to keep people going and just a few nerves from singer Sharleen Spiteri.

Despite playing to tens of thousands of people at the Murrayfield Live 8 gig, she admitted she was a little daunted.

'When you are on stage in front of 60,000 there's a big gap between you and the crowd,' said Sharleen. 'You do something like this and you're right in people's faces. I don't really get nervous when I perform - I haven't for years - but the release of a single, now that's really nerve-racking.'

Fans started arriving for the gig in the Granite City at 5.30am and Sharleen admitted she was amazed at the response. The singer told the crowd: 'You guys are nuts turning up at this time in the morning. I wouldn't if I didn't have to.'

She then launched into Black Eyed Boy, followed by Say What You Want and then the new single, which received a great reception. Anita Welsh, 41, and 13-year-old daughter Sarah had been first in the queue. Anita said: 'I've always been a fan but I've never seen them live. To be so close was just amazing.' After the gig Sharleen spent time meeting fans and came over misty eyed posing for a picture with a fan's baby.

Thinking about her own daughter, two-year-old Misty Kyd, she said: 'I just want to go home now The 37-year-old left her tot behind on this trip - but has been in constant contact with her through an iCam. And she will be taking Misty Kyd on her full tour later this year. She joked: 'If she doesn't like it, then the tour's cancelled and we're going home.'

Dragging her mind away from family, the singer turned her thoughts to her next gig in the capital. There was no time to waste as Sharleen jumped into a BMW alongside regional promotions manager at Mercury Records, Brendan Moon.

Sharleen tried to get some sleep but phone interviews with radio stations left little time. By the time we reached Edinburgh, she was in need of another cuppa and bag of crisps. She said: 'Playing these three small venues feels like it is supposed to be. It's about playing music and showing people what it is all about, how songs are created.'

This time 230 fans clustered in the basement of the Princes Street Virgin Store. As she sang Black Eyed Boy, Sharleen almost burst out laughing. She revealed later: 'That always happens to me.'

After the gig Sharleen and Brendan piled into the BMW, while the band's Tony McGovern and Ally McErlaine, with the rest of the roadies, hopped into the tour van.

As we waited for the stage to be set up in Glasgow, Sharleen, revealed she is already looking towards the second single from the album Red Book, due out in October.

She said: 'It's a choice between two songs - either What About Us or Can't Resist.'

The video for Getaway features Sharleen getting cosy with actor James Purefoy and she is already reading scripts for her next shoot. She said: 'Who knows who'll be in the next one, or what I'll do in it? It might be pornographic! Yeah, right.'

With that, she gave us one of her famous cheeky grins and told us all to go away. She was ready for her final gig of the day.

# Getaway is out now and Texas' album Red Book is released on October 318.15 AM ABERDEENRISE AND SHINE: Texas give Aberdeen a wake-up call

TRIO: Sharleen takes a break with the Razz girls

GETAWAY: Hitting the road for the next gig 3 PM EDINBURGH

WARM-UP: Taking the stage in Edinburgh.

ACTION: Sharleen gets down to work6.10 PM GLASGOWTHREE IN A ROWSharleen takes centre stage in Glasgow for the final Texas gig TIME-OUT: Another pit stop, another cup of tea


Back to the Articles page

Back to the Articles & Concert Reviews main page

If you don't see a toolbar on the left then please click here