Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Ure legacy

Ure will be rollling solo. His biggest concern? “I break a string.”
Ure will be rollling solo. His biggest concern? “I break a string.”

If Midge Ure were a fictional character in a movie about musicians, his real-life career would seem nothing short of impossible. Most performers would give their right arm to have one successful group, but Ure’s been part of a string of noteworthy chart contenders beginning in the mid 1970s, including Slik, the Rich Kids, Visage, Thin Lizzy, and Ultravox. He even scored a solo number-one hit with “If I Was” (1985).

Ure’s biggest impact, however, may be as part of the Band-Aid trust, helping organize such events as the Live Aid and Live 8 mega concerts, raising funds and awareness to fight hunger and poverty.

Past Event

Midge Ure

  • Tuesday, January 13, 2015, 8 p.m.
  • Casbah, 2501 Kettner Boulevard, San Diego
  • 21+

Ure stops in at the Casbah on January 13, part of a 25-date tour in support of his new album, Fragile. While he usually performs with a band, for this tour Ure will be taking the phrase “solo performer” to the extreme, traveling and organizing the tour from his U.K. base completely alone. “I saw it as an interesting challenge,” Ure tells the Reader. “I’m quite good at spending time in my own company. For this trip I suppose l like the unknown, which makes things interesting but scary. Worst-case scenario, you turn up in some town and no one comes to see you or the vehicle breaks down. Really, the only place I can see it getting awkward is if I break a string and have to go offstage to fix it.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

Ure says the night’s set will feature songs from Ultravox, Visage, on through to the new record, but nothing from the early part of his career. “The history lesson starts in 1979,” he joked. “I’ve never played Rich Kids songs acoustic; I really don’t know why that is,” Ure mused.

Ure is coauthor (with Bob Geldof) of the song, “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” which was recorded and released by an all-star group, Band Aid, in 1984, raising funds to combat hunger in Africa. The song was recently redone by a current crop of British stars, as Band Aid 30, with funds going to fund Ebola research. Artists taking part included One Direction, Chris Martin, and Queen drummer Roger Taylor. “It wasn’t a major move for Band Aid to take the focus from one disaster and put it on another,” he said. “For the past six months, there were questions about whether or not there would be an anniversary issue of some sort for the original recording and the answer was no. Until about six weeks ago.” He notes that it was important for artists participating to actually be in the studio for the recording. “With everyone’s schedule, it was extremely difficult to put together fast. But it was important for the artists to be present at the recording. It would be easy enough for someone to email in a part from, for example, San Diego, but it’s not the same. It’s something real, all those artists making a concerted effort.”

The new version of the song hit number three in the U.K. when released December 8, but it’s had critics. “We’ve had a mixed reaction to the song in the U.K.,” he said. “The new generation loves it because it’s their artists, it’s got their contemporaries on it, but the older generation is comparing it to the original.”

Would he be okay with it if the song was revived every decade in aid of a new cause?

“I’m sick to death of hearing it and I’m sure Bob is, too,” Ure said good-naturedly. “But the fact that the song has raised $240 million and continues to do so every time it comes on the radio is phenomenal,” he said. “If the song were to resurface every ten years for a cause, that would be a great legacy to leave.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Too $hort & DJ Symphony, Peppermint Beach Club, Holidays at the Zoo

Events December 19-December 21, 2024
Ure will be rollling solo. His biggest concern? “I break a string.”
Ure will be rollling solo. His biggest concern? “I break a string.”

If Midge Ure were a fictional character in a movie about musicians, his real-life career would seem nothing short of impossible. Most performers would give their right arm to have one successful group, but Ure’s been part of a string of noteworthy chart contenders beginning in the mid 1970s, including Slik, the Rich Kids, Visage, Thin Lizzy, and Ultravox. He even scored a solo number-one hit with “If I Was” (1985).

Ure’s biggest impact, however, may be as part of the Band-Aid trust, helping organize such events as the Live Aid and Live 8 mega concerts, raising funds and awareness to fight hunger and poverty.

Past Event

Midge Ure

  • Tuesday, January 13, 2015, 8 p.m.
  • Casbah, 2501 Kettner Boulevard, San Diego
  • 21+

Ure stops in at the Casbah on January 13, part of a 25-date tour in support of his new album, Fragile. While he usually performs with a band, for this tour Ure will be taking the phrase “solo performer” to the extreme, traveling and organizing the tour from his U.K. base completely alone. “I saw it as an interesting challenge,” Ure tells the Reader. “I’m quite good at spending time in my own company. For this trip I suppose l like the unknown, which makes things interesting but scary. Worst-case scenario, you turn up in some town and no one comes to see you or the vehicle breaks down. Really, the only place I can see it getting awkward is if I break a string and have to go offstage to fix it.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

Ure says the night’s set will feature songs from Ultravox, Visage, on through to the new record, but nothing from the early part of his career. “The history lesson starts in 1979,” he joked. “I’ve never played Rich Kids songs acoustic; I really don’t know why that is,” Ure mused.

Ure is coauthor (with Bob Geldof) of the song, “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” which was recorded and released by an all-star group, Band Aid, in 1984, raising funds to combat hunger in Africa. The song was recently redone by a current crop of British stars, as Band Aid 30, with funds going to fund Ebola research. Artists taking part included One Direction, Chris Martin, and Queen drummer Roger Taylor. “It wasn’t a major move for Band Aid to take the focus from one disaster and put it on another,” he said. “For the past six months, there were questions about whether or not there would be an anniversary issue of some sort for the original recording and the answer was no. Until about six weeks ago.” He notes that it was important for artists participating to actually be in the studio for the recording. “With everyone’s schedule, it was extremely difficult to put together fast. But it was important for the artists to be present at the recording. It would be easy enough for someone to email in a part from, for example, San Diego, but it’s not the same. It’s something real, all those artists making a concerted effort.”

The new version of the song hit number three in the U.K. when released December 8, but it’s had critics. “We’ve had a mixed reaction to the song in the U.K.,” he said. “The new generation loves it because it’s their artists, it’s got their contemporaries on it, but the older generation is comparing it to the original.”

Would he be okay with it if the song was revived every decade in aid of a new cause?

“I’m sick to death of hearing it and I’m sure Bob is, too,” Ure said good-naturedly. “But the fact that the song has raised $240 million and continues to do so every time it comes on the radio is phenomenal,” he said. “If the song were to resurface every ten years for a cause, that would be a great legacy to leave.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Memories of bonfires amid the pits off Palm

Before it was Ocean View Hills, it was party central
Next Article

Big kited bluefin on the Red Rooster III

Lake fishing heating up as the weather cools
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader