W L INTERVIEW
AN INTERVIEW WITH MIDGE URE
By Diane Tremarco
Midge Ure is a Scottish musician , singer-songwriter and producer . His stage name , Midge , is a phonetic reversal of Jim , the diminutive form of his actual name . Ure enjoyed particular success in the 1970s and 1980s in bands including Slik , Thin Lizzy , Rich Kids and Visage , and as the frontman of Ultravox . In 1984 , he co-wrote and produced the charity single " Do They Know It ' s Christmas ?" which has sold 3.7 million copies in the UK . The song is the second highest-selling single in UK chart history . Ure co-organised Band Aid , Live Aid and Live 8 with Bob Geldof . He acts as a trustee for the charity and also serves as an ambassador for Save the Children . Wirral Life caught up with him ahead of his UK tour .
Growing up you lived in a one-bedroom tenement , I believe until you were 10 ? Did that make you close as a family and does that closeness still remain ? I think it does make you close , you know the physical constraints meant that I had to share a bed with my brother whilst my parents slept in the living room with my young sister in between them . So , you can ’ t help but be close . My Dad would be out at 6am driving a baker ’ s van and he never got back until 6 or 7 o ’ clock at night so we never seen that much of him but I suppose it was a good foundation for being close . You inevitably get closer the older you get and yes , we are all still close and you pass that closeness on to your own family .
What made you quit your apprenticeship and become a musician ? I had played guitar throughout school and found other friends that were like minded and so formed a band . You know how it is ?
When I got the apprenticeship , I felt very lucky . It was the path my parents had chosen for my brother and I as we were not academic . This would give a trade and set us up for life . About halfway through the apprenticeship , our keyboard player was auditioning for a well-known Scottish band and I went along to support him . They asked me to play guitar alongside him and I ended up getting the job and he didn ’ t ! I went home to my parents and said I would finish the apprenticeship if they wanted me to , but my heart was in music . My mother told me to follow my heart .
Who were your musical influences back then ? There were many . Small Faces were probably the first band I saw on TV and absolutely loved . I was into the British Blues boom , early Fleetwood Mac and Cream but then you discover David Bowie and everything changes .
What music excites you today ? I find myself underwhelmed a lot of the time . It ’ s a dreadful thing to say but I don ’ t listen to a lot of music in the car on the radio . I don ’ t like the repetitiveness of a lot of it .
Is that because we are old though ? Yes , I think it is . But even the youngsters look backwards to Jimi Hendrix , Cream and Led Zeppelin . I just don ’ t like what today ’ s musicians have to offer .
I was very surprised , knowing about Slik , The Rich Kids , Visage and Ultravox to find that you played and wrote for Thin Lizzy ! Who knew ? Thin Lizzy fortunately !
To say you stood in for Gary Moore though , blimey , I was taken aback ! How on earth did that come about ? I remember I had just joined Ultravox and I was in the studio , putting the finishing touches to the first Visage album when a call came through from Phil Lynott . Phil and I were friends and he said that Gary hadn ’ t turned up for a couple of shows so was out the band . There was three weeks left on the tour and could I fly out to America the next day to finish the tour with them ? My head was screaming I am nowhere near good enough to stand in for Gary Moore on any level and my heart said I ’ m in , yes please !
What song would you most likely sing when just you and your guitar are in a room ? It probably wouldn ’ t be one of mine . Ziggy Stardust , David Bowie , the chord structure is wonderful . You never stop learning in life and I don ’ t learn other people ’ s songs often but I decided I wanted to learn Ziggy Stardust as it is a favourite . The more I play it ; I am in awe of how brilliant Bowie actually was . He was so musical .
Was singing Vienna at Live Aid the best performance moment of your career ? On one level , for the audience capacity , yes ; was it my go to memory ? No . I don ’ t actually remember it much . We only had 18 minutes on stage and that wasn ’ t a long time . The overall memory of walking on stage , the nerves and the relief that it was all okay . We had no soundcheck and the equipment was really flimsy , it looked like it could break at any moment . There were no backing tracks , no sequences , everything was played live . So , by the time you did that , calmed down and watch the audience , it had gone . The highlight moments in my career are the ones no-one sees - the time Kate Bush did a duet with me or sitting playing guitar with Eric Clapton in a room in Monserrat .
Which do you prefer : performing , writing or producing ? Performing , I think . I find songwriting a task . I worry about it and I work really hard at it . I know some people can rattle them off and
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