Rock legend Richard Ashcroft returns to his hometown after 15 years: Goodbye or reunion?-HO

Here’s what he has to say about his new tour dates

LEGENDARY frontman Richard Ashcroft is heading back out on tour – 15 years since his break-up from The Verve.

During the height of the Britpop era in the 90s, The Verve charmed audiences with hits including Bittersweet Symphony and The Drugs Don’t Work.

The Verve were one of the most defining British bands of the 90sCredit: Getty

Richard Ashcroft is heading on a homecoming tour later this yearCredit: Getty – Contributor
Since their split in 1999, Richard Ashcroft has arguably experienced the greatest success among his former bandmates. He has released six albums since 2000, all of which have achieved UK Top 5 status. In 2019, his exceptional contributions to music were acknowledged with recognition from the Ivor Novello Awards.

Currently, the Wigan-born artist is preparing to embark on a tour, with significant dates scheduled in his hometown.

“After 25 years, I’m back playing in my hometown,” Richard said. “Looking forward to an amazing night in
Wigan.”

The star is set to perform two dates at Wigan’s Robin Park, scheduled for Saturday, July 20, and Sunday, July 21.

Saturday’s lineup will feature support from Cast, Redrum, and Maxwell Varey, while Sunday’s show will see support from The Zutons, The Royston Club, and Stanleys.

Tickets for Saturday’s performance have already sold out, prompting the addition of the second date.

With the release of their 1997 album “Urban Hymns,” the group, consisting of Ashcroft as frontman, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones, and drummer Peter Salisbury, achieved international success.

They won Brit awards for best British band, were nominated for a Grammy for Bittersweet Symphony and even knocked Oasis off the number one spot in the UK charts.

However, just two years later the band had bitterly split, with physical fights among their numerous issues.

After one fight in Dusseldorf, McCabe quit the band while they were on tour, and after that the band began to fizzle out – suffering a further setback when Massive Attack pulled out of their US tour.

Officially breaking up in 1999, the band since made attempts to reunite, but largely found success with their own solo projects.

When questioned about the possibility of reuniting, Ashcroft quipped, “You’re more likely to get all four Beatles on stage.”

Nevertheless, they did reunite from 2007 to 2009 before parting ways once more.

None of the band members have ever provided a clear explanation for their breakup, with Ashcroft acknowledging in a 2018 interview with NME that there were “things left unsaid.”

“If you wanted me to give clarity on why or what was the main factor, what I’d be doing was changing… I made a decision quite a number of years ago that I’d see how it pans out,” he told Radio X.

“I’ll see if any other member tries to re-write history, you know. I’ll see how many bizarre takes on events stack up and then maybe one day I’ll go: ‘You know what? I’ll write the book’.”

In the same chat, he later added: “There was real people’s lives. It was real emotions, and I’ve never really thought about completely clarifying it because I know the damage that clarifying it will do.

“So I am prepared to take any bizarre misshapen f**ked-up version of that reality said by anyone,” he concluded.

“Any ex member of the band can say what the fuck they like, because I know the truth and I’m cool with it. And I know what I’ve done since the band, and I know what I’ll continue to do. Judge me by my works…”

The star has been celebrated for his contribution to British musicCredit: Getty Images – Getty