Music interview '“ Suggs: '˜Fame is a dangerous substance'

Suggs is touring his one-man show. Picture: Perou

His career has spanned over three decades, in which he has been a musician and songwriter, an actor and a radio personality.

This year he returns to the stage solo for his one man show, ‘Suggs: What a King Cnut – A Life in the Realm of Madness’.

It’s not the first time Suggs has taken to the stage solo. His previous one man tour ‘Suggs: My Life Story in Words and Music’ was a smash hit with rave reviews.

Over 34 dates between January and March, Suggs uses this tour to reflect on the surprises that awaited him throughout the last.

Suggs is very honest about his experiences with fame. Madness were an iconic group in the 80s, having supported the likes of David Bowie, won handfuls of awards for their musical talent and work, and achieving 15 top ten UK singles.

Speaking about the pitfalls of fame, he says “fame is a dangerous substance. You know, it’s great, it’s fantastic, I’m not complaining in any way. But a lot of people got very damaged by it and I certainly flew quite close to the flame on a number of occasions myself.”

Despite this, the heights of his fame and success are immense. Few people won’t remember the performance by Madness on the roof of Buckingham Palace to close the London Olympics ceremony in 2012.

Reflecting on one his biggest gigs to date, Suggs says: “I don’t know if anyone remembers the closing ceremony of the Olympics, playing on the roof of Buckingham Palace, a couple of small things along the way and yes... not like the Olympics though, trumpets, strings, and I forgot the first f****** line to Our House. Only been singing it for 40 years...”

If the last tour and the reaction to it is anything to go by, this one should not be missed. A must for any Madness fan, this show guarantees a hilarious understanding of the ridiculous life of an 80s icon.

Suggs will be performing at Leeds Town Hall on February 15. Tickets are priced £31.50, and are available to buy online from http://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/Suggs-tickets/artist/1659638.