Interview with ABC Lead Singer Martin Fry

Interview with ABC Lead Singer Martin Fry

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Posted 2024-10-11 by Tony Collinsfollow
It’s been a remarkable journey but, in some ways, Martin Fry of pop legends ABC is just getting started. Martin has scaled the heights of pop stardom, creating the iconic record The Lexicon of Love along the way, while also surviving a cancer scare with Hodgkin lymphoma at the height of his success. Now the man who has hung out with the likes of Andy Warhol and Robbie Williams has hit the road to share his remarkable stories and sing acoustic versions of his greatest hits that still stand the test of time.

Martin, who recently published his autobiography called A Lexicon of Life, is embarking on an intimate evening tour that will include an appearance at the Lichfield Garrick Theatre in Staffordshire on 11 June 2025. A super deluxe version of the book is hand-bound in the same Savile Row fabric used to make Martin’s famous gold suits, and features a gold vinyl of his most popular songs, such as The Look of Love, Poison Arrow, All Of My Heart, and When Smokey Sings.

Martin Fry, the lead singer of ABC, embarking on an intimate solo tour


Martin, who tours throughout October and November before resuming next May, says simply: "It’s been an incredible journey.” Having being inspired by David Bowie and The Sex Pistols while growing up, he soon realised music was in his blood. “I vividly remember that magical moment when I first went to see a rock show. Even before the act came on I was looking at the roadies on an empty stage and admiring the size of the PA system, totally entertained by that mind-boggling spectacle. My first gig was Cockney Rebel and opening up for them were Sailor. There was something totally comforting about watching a band on stage.

Global stardom, including TransAtlantic success, followed the 1982 release of their brilliantly distinctive and flamboyant debut album, The Lexicon of Love. Martin recalls: “I remember later in Tokyo, the four of us were sitting eating in a restaurant, and a crowd gathered outside. People were literally trying to smash the window to get in. We had to go out the back door as the front window splintered and we were ushered into a speeding car. That kind of fame and recognition I can live without.

Photo by Christie Goodwin - The Lexicon Of Love Orchestral Tour 2024, CC BY-SA 4.0


Bandmates came and went as ABC became a fixture of the charts, hitting the number one spot and earning a platinum disc for The Lexicon of Love. They went on to enjoy gold discs for '80s follow-up albums Beauty Stab and Alphabet City, with Martin undergoing his cancer treatment in between the releases.

Martin survived the crazy journey of pop stardom, eventually getting sober after his rock’n’roll lifestyle had taken its toll. “Things changed dramatically for me. I just entered a new and very different world of being sober. I wanted to be present, for (wife) Julie, for (children) Louis and for Nancy. Prior to that I’d always been off somewhere; off to a show, off to a bar, or just drifting off if I was in the room. That reality check had a profound effect on me. Sitting in AA I’d be looking down at my cup of coffee, thinking: ‘What am I doing here? My whole future is in this polystyrene cup.

Lichfield Garrick theatre


Obviously, there’s a big part of me that identifies with the man in the gold lamé suit. That’s who I became. There are 40,000 people dancing in a field, singing my words back at me. But, you know, you have to understand that that’s just one part of who you are and what you do. That’s just one small facet of your life. Performing and playing shows had changed for me in the 90’s. I woke up to the reality that in the past, I’d been half-hearted, in comparison to what I was capable of. It’s a tough thing to admit to, but I felt I could have done so much better.

A renaissance led to him joining Robbie Williams on a tour of football stadia, playing to tens of thousands of fans each night. More tours followed before Martin created his brilliant new record, The Lexicon Of Love II, in 2016, which gave him his highest chart success since ABC's debut album 34 years earlier. And now he’s sharing his stories during an intimate theatre tour, in which he’ll play acoustic versions of songs with two trusted bandmates, while remembering the remarkable journey he’s been on. “It’s been a wild ride,” he says. “And the incredible thing is that as I hit the road with The Lexicon of Life, I feel as though I’m just getting started.

ABC - An Intimate Evening with Martin Fry comes to the Lichfield Garrick on Wednesday 11th June 2025. Tickets are available by phoning the Box Office on 01543 412121 or by visiting: www.lichfieldgarrick.com/whats-on/music/abc-an-intimate-evening-with-martin-fry/3334
A full list of tour dates can be found at: https://www.abcmartinfry.com
Signed copies of Martin Fry’s book, with his new CD and vinyl record, are also available at: https://www.abcmartinfry.com

#music
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#pop music
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295544 - 2024-10-11 14:11:37

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