Sharleen Spiteri

February 2009



TEXAS haven't split. They're on a break.
But with Sharleen Spiteri's debut solo album, Melody, reaching number three in UK chart, one wonders if the Scottish group behind the hits Say What You Want, Black Eyed Boy and I Don't Want A Lover will be seen again.
"The music I was hearing in my head just didn't fit with Texas or what the band was about," she says.
What was going on her head was Nancy Sinatra, Johnny Cash, Lee Hazlewood, Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, The Beatles, The Stones and Elvis – the music the 41-year-old grew up with.
"I was obsessed by Elvis. I thought he was the most magnificent man of all time. I loved everything about him. I remember when I was a kid and I had long hair I'd get in the bath and shampoo my hair in to a quiff."
Despite the source of her inspiration for Melody, musically it's not world apart from Texas. What does stand out is the lyrical content: All The Times I've Cried, I'm Going To Haunt You, Where Did It Go Wrong? and Stop, I Don't Love You Anymore. It's a snapshot of the break-up her long-term relationship with the father of her daughter Misty.
"That was something I found difficult to deal with," she admits, referring to the tabloid stories that ran when the news of the split broke.
"It's not something that's ever been part of my life."
Quite. So why throw all your emotions on the album for everyone to see? You must have regretted being so open.
"No it's actually worked out perfect for me. Because I put this record out nobody asks me about it."
It's one way of looking at it. But I'm asking. For example, doesn't it feel odd singing those songs when the emotions of four years ago are no longer there?
"I didn't write the records that long ago. When I was going through all the stuff the last thing on my mind was making a bloody record. I couldn't have cared less."
She adds: "I didn't know I was going to write about it. As far as I was concerned I was in a really good place. I guess it was something that was in me that needed to come out."
And it's not done her any harm, sales wise..
"It's the best pay-off for a split ever," she laughs.
Will the next album be more of a jolly affair?
"I don't know. I haven't even started it yet. I don't really write jolly songs. I never have done. I just write. I'm not a hahahaaaa kind of person", she says, feigning hysteria.
"Your writing is an extension of the person you are."
So you're quite morose then?
"Ooooh..."
The lyrics I mean, not the music.
"I say it how it is. If I'm not happy with something... I'm happy to show my emotions and my feelings. If I've got an opinion on something I never really back down."
Is she happy as a solo artist?
"It's not a problem," she says.
Not that it was planned.
"I didn't really expect to make a full record. It wasn't something that I'd ever had any need to pursue, even though for years I had been asked to do it.
" It just felt right."
A few Texas tours have dropped into Nottingham. Any memories?
"You've good restaurants. I remember it being very good for food," or 'gud f'fud' as it sounds with the Spiteri twang.
"I've eaten a lot in Nottingham. And yep, I'm a big Robin Hood fan. The night he showed up at a Texas gig and did a couple of songs, in his tights... yep... Nottingham's always really good for me. I always have a laugh down there."