facing in 2014?
MU: I think the age old problem I have,
especially in America, is people understanding who or what I am. I had that
problem when I first came to America
with Ultravox. If you didn't listen to college radio you had no idea who Ultravox
was. The mass of listeners at the time still
listened to Styx and Boston on the radio.
And we were these bizarre kids coming
struggling with my voice that evening,
but the energy I got from the audience
was absolutely fantastic. I'm trying to get
back to Mayne Stage later on this year.
That was a great place to play, and I just
loved the audience.
IE: Let's talk some trivia here. Not too
many people know that you toured in the
United States with Thin Lizzy back in
09•2014
out of the UK with synthesizers, drums
machines, violins, and guitar, and making this bizarre noise. So it was always
the select audience of kids who listened
to college radio who came out to see us. I
think it's still that recognition factor. I'm
60 years old; I made loads and loads of
records. I have been making records professionally since I was 18, and the majority of America would not have a clue of
who I am. So that always has been a little bit of a stumbling block, plus it doesn't help that I kind of disappeared from
America for a long time. I was saying to
my record label that I was very successful
everywhere except for America, so I have
a very strange life story to tell.
IE: On the contrary, I have to say your
last performance in Chicago at the
Mayne Stage was a great show.
MU: Yeah, that was a great show. I was
1979, and performed on Phil Lynott's
solo albums. How did you get involved?
MU: Back in the '70s I went to see a very
young Gary Moore in a band called Skid
Row (UK version). I saw Gary when he
was 16 years old, and I was 14 at the time.
I was in a club watching this kid who was
just an outstanding musician. I was raving about this band for months to come.
There was a new band coming in a few
months time that was associated with
Skid Row somehow. I think Phil Lynott
was singing for Skid Row for a bit then
he formed he own band, so I went to see
Thin Lizzy. I absolutely fell in love with
Phillip. His voice was fantastic, and he
was a great songwriter, and a great
charismatic frontman.
We became
friends. After I joined The Rich Kids, and
moved to London, I used to hang out
with Phillip, which was great. When I
joined Ultravox, and I think I was in the
12 illinoisentertainer.com september 2014
Ultravox 1981, Ure (moustache)
studio putting the finishing touches to
the first Visage album, I got a phone call
from Phillip from Arkansas asking me to
fill in for Gary Moore for three weeks.
They flew me out; it was my first time
ever in America, and I finished the tour.
But I knew all the time that I was going
back to carry on with Ultravox. Even
though we had no management, no
record label, I was so excited to be part of
Ultravox. I wasn't interested in joining
Thin Lizzy. Thin Lizzy was great fun, but
Phillip said to me, "Come over, do the
tour, I'll talk about Thin Lizzy and then
you'll talk about Ultravox." It was fantastic; it really helped out.
IE: It will be 30 years this year since you
co-wrote and recorded "Do They Know
It's Christmas?" with Bob Geldof. Are
there any plans to celebrate this anniversary?
MU: There aren't at the moment. We
haven't gotten anything lined up. Maybe
because the next year it will be the
anniversary of Live Aid, and I think glob-