Stereophonics frontman Kelly Jones has his life in perfect harmony

It marks the 20th year since the band signed the record deal that set them on the road to stardom and 10 million album sales.

And the band are looking ahead to an emotional homecoming at the massive Cardiff City Stadium.

But the biggest moment for Kelly, 41, and wife Jakki will be the birth of their third child in March.

The couple already have two girls, Bootsy and Misty, aged 11 and eight, and Kelly can’t wait to welcome the latest addition.

“I’m well aware that changing nappies comes with the territory so I don’t mind that at all,” laughs Kelly.

“I love my daughters and being involved in their world.

“They make me laugh and it gives it all a purpose to be honest.

“They actually like a bit of rock, a bit of AC-DC, so they like the sort of stuff that I’m playing around the house.

“They’re at an age when they like hearing me on the radio when they’re in the car with their friends.

“So, I’ve probably got a few years yet until I’m not cool!”

It was 1996 that the band put pen to paper on their record deal, with the debut single hitting the shops the following year.

But two decades on, there is absolutely no sign of his enthusiasm waning.

“I’m enjoying it more than ever. I love playing live and having a catalogue of nine albums to pick from means there’s a whole world of different songs and styles to pick from.”

The band played the SSE Hydro in Glasgow earlier this month as part of their ninth arena tour, as well as a warm-up gig at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh in November.

Their new 10-track album Keep The Village Alive went straight to number one and follows on from 2013’s platinum-selling Graffiti On A Train.

In fact, their string of consecutive number ones puts them in the same company as the Beatles, ABBA, Oasis and U2.

And having such well-received new material means there’s a whole new generation of fans coming on board.

“It’s great to see the front row now having 16 and 17-year-old kids just discovering the band.

“So there’s that new audience as well as the people who’ve been following us since day one.

“We’ve spent a lot of time making sure the songs we produce are good enough to hold their own with acts today.

“We headlined the V Festival alongside big current acts like Ellie Goulding and George Ezra and are appealing to their audience as well as our own.”

There’s no doubt that their down-to-earth Welsh roots and the bond between Kelly, bassist Richard Jones, guitarist Adam Zindani and newest member, drummer Jamie Morrison, is key to the continuing success.

Even when they’re not on the road, Kelly says they rehearse every week and there’s a lot of late-night camaraderie.

“We all grew up together and we’ll go out after rehearsals and then come back to mine and play records until three or four in the morning.

“A lot of stuff gets sorted on those nights when you’re bonding as mates.

“I wouldn’t want to be in a band where I’m not getting on with people. That seems such a waste of time.

“The point of doing it is to go out and have fun and play music.

“I don’t want to meet people on stage and not see them until the next one.

“Maybe we’re lucky because we’ve all got the same kind of backbone.

“We’re working class people with families who work in factories or whatever so we appreciate what we have.

“We keep working hard for it. We’re very proud of what we’ve achieved.

“We’ve never been driven by a record company or management.

“Instead we’ve always been motivated to do it ourselves.”

The band were the first act to play Cardiff City Stadium, in 2010, and they’ll be back for another raucous night next June 4.

While that will obviously be right on home turf, Kelly admits that family life plays a major role in dictating their musical world these days.

“You used to be away for eight weeks at a time but we’re all family-orientated. We come back home a lot more between gigs,” he adds.

“It can be exhausting coming and going, but it’s just a case that the balance in everyone’s life changes as you get older.”