Tony Hadley tours in his own show

5:16pm Thursday 26th October 2006

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TONY Hadley can remember the first time he heard and saw Frank Sinatra live. "I was 17 and going through my punk phase and my parents dragged me along to the concert at the Albert Hall. It was meant to give me a bit of culture. At the time I was more interested in Queen and David Bowie than the music of Frank Sinatra, which my mum used to play on a Sunday morning when she was cooking dinner.

"But I'm really glad I relented and went to see Old Blue Eyes beause it was like an epiphany. The moment he started singing I was hooked.

The album is a project really close to my heart and I’ve been working on it for a long time

Tony Hadley

"I've always wanted to recreate the romance of that music, and as I've got older I realise the importance that music has had on the way I've sung throughout my career."

As the lead singer with Spandau Ballet, Tony's versatile voice has wooed many with hits such as True, Through The Barricades and Gold in the 1980s. Yet it's only now, as a solo artist that he feels he's recreated that "special magic" he heard back in 1977.

The album, Passing Strangers, is released this month. It's full of songs about every facet of love from finding love, losing love and then rescueing a girl and falling in love, again. Tony delivers it all in his own inimitable way.

It's an 18-track CD featuring old classics such as The Good Life, The Mood I'm In. And new songs that have been cleverly arranged to sound like old songs such as Leaves of Love as well as modern day hits, such as Nora Jones' Don't Know Why which has been composed with a beautiful bossanova rhythm giving it a real 60s jazz swing feel.

"The album is a project really close to my heart and I've been working on it for a long time,"enthuses Tony.

"In the past I've had to compromise bowing to what the industry wants me to do. With this album, I was totally selfish. I worked hard on the choice of songs and the vocal and musical arrangements. And I've been lucky with the people I've had arround me like Paul Moran - he's been the real scientist with the arrangements - and the engineer Andre Zackamin.

Tony is now in the middle of a 14-day promotion tour and he will be performing on Sunday, November 12, at Wycombe Swan with his 17-piece band.

"We'll be performing songs from the new album," says Tony, "but we've also arranged some of the songs from the Spandau Ballet songbook and arranged some of my favourite songs too including Walking On Memphis, Let's Stick Together and That's Life in a jazz-swing style.

"There's nothing like performing with a big band behind you and we've got the lot: trumpets, trombones and saxophones. And, if the mood takes them they might even get up and do a routine. Anything goes."

Tony Hadley, Swinging True - The Big Band Tour, is at the Wycombe Swan, on Sunday, November 12. Tickets: 01494 512000.