Elkie Brooks says she’s still getting buzz on stage after 60 years

THIS year marks an incredible 60 years since Elkie Brooks performed her first paid gig.

She was just 13 and sang under her real name, Elaine Bookbinder.

It was the start of a journey that shows no signs of stopping and which brings her to Perth for the only Scottish date in her latest tour.

“I was paid £5 to perform at the La Ronde club on Cheetham Hill Road in Manchester,” recalled Elkie, speaking from her home in Devon.

“It was my brother’s 80th birthday recently and we were back in Manchester. We went round a few of the old haunts like my school and the synagogue, but I didn’t have a chance to see if the club was still there.”

A couple of years later she went to an audition organised by Sharon Osbourne’s dad, Don Arden, who gave her a break and also suggested a name change.

She’s been performing as Elkie Brooks ever since.

“I started to take singing seriously when I was seven or eight, that this was something I could do and certainly as I went into my teenage years,” Elkie continued.

“I had a reasonable voice from a young age but I worked hard to make it better.”

That voice remains powerful to this day and Elkie says if it ever faltered she would immediately call it a day.

“If my voice starts to wobble I will hang the mic up – I won’t be one of those people who keeps going.

“My fitness for my age is fairly good, so all being well I will continue for many years to come.

“I don’t work every night – I didn’t like to do that 30 years ago and certainly don’t enjoy it now. Singing is very physical – the voice needs to have a rest.

“I practise every other day, maybe every day, at my lovely baby grand piano that my family gave me for my 70th birthday.

“So, even if all else fails, I will sit at that and play for myself.” One of the reasons for mum-of-two Elkie’s high levels of fitness is her love of martial art, Aikido.

She began attending classes with one of her sons when he was young and practises every day.

“I do the exercises each morning,” she explained.

“I took all the grading years ago and did my black belt when I was 50. I think I’m better now than I was then.”

Elkie had been in the business a long time before she enjoyed her breakthrough solo single, Pearl’s A Singer, in 1977 and Lilac Wine, No More The Fool and Fool If You Think It’s Over followed.

She had previously been in bands such as Vinegar Joe – with Robert Palmer – and Wet Willie, but those only came after a tough period in the ’60s when she ploughed the unforgiving cabaret scene.

“I had to do lots of dreadful cabaret clubs, where some of the house bands were dreadful,” she said.

“I thought I couldn’t do any worse than this and that’s what made me decide to learn the piano.

“I stuck at it in that scene, but there were moments I wasn’t happy and it made me think I should maybe do something else – I thought of becoming a PE teacher.

“But I didn’t want to go home and say I had failed, so I stuck at it.”

Elkie met her husband, Trevor, when she went to a Diana Ross show in London and he was the sound engineer.

More than 40 years later, they are still a couple and on the road together.

Elkie’s eldest son, Jay, and her daughter-in-law run a music company that promotes and manages her. Jay is also a musician working on a new studio album with his mum, due for release within the next six months.

“The whole family used to come out on the road with me,” Elkie smiled.

“Jay was only six months old when he came on tour and Joey was just a few days old when I did Top Of The Pops and then went to Germany to do promo.”

She added: “We’re working on the album now and hope it will be out at the end of the year or early next year, but my attitude is I don’t care how long it takes as long as the product is good.

“I still enjoy doing what I do and I believe that if you have your health and wellbeing then you should get out there and do it.”

Elkie Brooks, Perth Concert Hall, Saturday