One Last Time

hen the news came that Joan Armatrading, whose career spans over six decades now, had announced her final world tour, there can be no doubt of the collective feelings of despair among her legions of fans across the globe. Her Australian fans have had the privilege of witnessing her prowess on the stage several times, notably her standout performances at the Byron Bay Blues & Roots Festival over the years. With the reaction from her fans in mind, Armatrading explains that her age is a contributing factor in calling it quits for the major touring circuit. “From when the tour first starts off they tend to go for 18 months, and when I tour I like to do it all in one go and not have great big long breaks in the middle of it. I’m sixty-three now, I’m sixty-four at the end of the year, and I’ll be sixty-five when the tour is finished. If I were to record again I would be about sixty-seven when it was finished, which means I would be sixty-nine when that was all finished, and I don’t really want to be on the road non-stop at that age.” 

Armatrading is a woman who has come a long way, both professionally and personally, as she recalls. “In the beginning I was so shy. I think all the audience ever used to see was the top of my head, and the record company that I was with at the time knew I could sing but they didn’t know I could talk – so being on stage was quite traumatic, I’m surprised I did it actually. But over the years you’d hear the applause, and the audience would come up to see you afterwards and tell you how much they’ve enjoyed your performance and what it means to them, and that just builds the confidence and makes it less frightening.”

Armatrading intends making this last world tour really count, both for herself and her audience. “I have a feeling it is going to be emotional, and that’s one of the reasons I’ve chosen to do intimate shows. Half the shows are between 300 and 500 seaters, and then the other half are in larger theatres, and I’ve deliberately done that to get this sort of atmosphere that I want to create and these memories that I want to create for myself.”

Armatrading has also managed to find a way to make things new by taking the stage completely solo for the very first time. “I’ve had to acquaint myself with playing some of the songs actually,” Armatrading admits. “Even though I have written some of the songs and initially I would have played some of them on stage, over the years I’ve stopped playing and just sang. I haven’t played the piano on stage since 1976 and I haven’t done a world tour on my own before either, so there’s quite a lot that’s making me anxious about this tour really,” she laughs. “But the audience only has me to look at this time, so hopefully they’ll be alright with that.”