Top 90s pop star to play small Leeds working men's club as part of UK tour
A 1990s pop sensation has talked to the Harrogate Advertiser about his return to the limelight and the prospect of playing Leeds’s coolest indie venue.
With a critically-acclaimed new album to promote, Chesney Hawkes has come out of the shadows of writing and producing for other people in the most high profile way since he hit number one in 1991 with his debut single, The One And Only.
"I was only 19 when I had a number one and I thought that was just what happened,” said Chesney.
"You go into the studio, you make a record written by Nik Kershaw, then it becomes a big hit.
"Ever since then, I’ve written with Nik for other people.
"My new album is completely me. It’s the most honest, vulnerable thing I’ve ever done."
Called Living Arrows, the album was produced by and co-written with Jake Gosling of Ed Sheeran fame who, incidentally, was a friend of Chesney’s as a youngster and was with him celebrating on the day The One And Only reached the top spot.
Living Arrows album was made BBC Radio 2’s Album of the Week, just one small sign that Chesney is finally gaining the respect as a musician he deserves.
Fans will get the chance to see the still youthful 54-year-old up close and personal at award-winning indie venue the Brudenell Social Club in Leeds on March 12.
"I look on it as changing people’s perspectives about me one day at a time,” said Chesney.