Last year Lulu announced her retirement from touring. Indeed, she came here, to Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall, to bid farewell to her home town fans with a sassy show celebrating 60 years in showbiz.
But, hang on, she’s back. Not singing so much as recounting her remarkable life, in conversation with a fawning interviewer, to promote a just-released memoir, If Only You Knew.
Her adoring fans, mostly on the elderly side, didn’t mind that they’ve heard these stories before. Lulu — or rather, “wee Marie” as the singer/actress/consummate chatterbox born Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie frequently referred to herself — has a couple of autobiographies behind her. Raking over the highlights has long been integral to her concerts.
Which would explain the swathes of empty seats. For about £60 a ticket, there was no band — just a bloke on a keyboard tucked to one side who doubtless wished he had more to do, and a screen behind that showed old news clips and concert footage.
At 76, Lulu looked fantastic. In a black suit and high heels, as slim as a staple, she was engaging and emotional from the off. Not even an accent that freely drifted across continents could spoil her stories.
