A very special event took place on Sunday evening at Manchester’s AO Arena. Charlatan legend, radio host and author Tim Burgess sat down with 6 Music’s Chris Hawkins to discuss his musical journey and pinnacle moments of his career to date.
Best known as the frontman of The Charlatans and of course for his continuous campaign of new music, nurturing new bands with ‘Tim’s Listening Party’ a small audience finally got the opportunity to hear from the man himself. The event took place at the Arena’s newer venue, a small space for evenings like this, with a corner decked out in what used to be a walkway. For such a large venue, it seems to make sense to make use of such a ginormous space in this manner, making the venue ideal for alternative evenings.
Chris Hawkins is an exceptional interviewer, making his interviewee comfortable with a measured and gentle questioning technique that teases out the most wonderful responses from musicians. Hawkins loves music, which may seem obvious given his job as a radio host on 6 Music, but this love of music is ever present in his warm stage presence, at times unable to contain his delight at being next to such an icon as Burgess. It is a delight to watch the process as Burgess became more at ease as the evening unfolded.
Hawkins delved in Burgess’s school life and how his love of music was influenced by his parents love of Abba, with Burgess finding his own pathway, growing up in small Cheshire village, his bedroom walls adorned with posters of Debbie Harry. Burgess, whilst admitting he wasn’t overly academic at school, developed a love of the creative arts and soon started to form bands with school friends.
A lovely part of the evening was when Burgess performed a number of tracks with Helen O’Hara of Dexy’s Midnight Runners fame. O’Hara and Burgess recently completed a number of dates at Manchester’s RNCM and it was a beautiful pairing so we were pleasantly surprised to see Helen join in again this evening. All in all it was a memorable evening, a different insight into one of the UK’s most well loved musicians. Thank you to Tim’s team and to Chris Hawkins for having us down.
Any fan of Burgess will know his passion for championing new bands. On the 25th May across the city, bands have been invited by Burgess to sell their merchandise across a number of venues in a campaign to allow artists to keep 100% of the profit obtained from the sale of merch. Bands involved include Inspiral Carpets, New Order, A Certain Ratio, Chris Bridgett and many many more! Details can be found HERE.
WORDS BY FRAN HOLDEN
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