Rick Astley releases new album and single ahead of shows in Manchester and Liverpool
Rick Astley spoke to Granada Reports Entertainment Correspondent Caroline Whitmore
Rick Astley has revealed one of his latest music videos was shot by his wife on a mobile phone - and cost less than £5 to make.
Astley has released his ninth studio album 'Are We There Yet?', featuring 12 original tracks inspired by the music he listened to during his decades of touring the USA.
The album cover features a picture of Rick Astley on his first ever tour in Las Vegas, from 1989.
He said: "From that picture, to me today, it’s like 'When are you ever there? Whatever you do, whatever you achieve, whatever you get up to, do you ever really feel you’ve got there?"'
The singer songwriter may have travelled a long way from his home town of Newton-Le-Willows during his three decades of touring, but he says he still has connections to the North West.
He said: "My sister lives in Newton, and my brother lives just a bit further up the M6…
"My wife... and my daughter who lives in Denmark, they really love Manchester. You know, I just kind of lived in Manchester for a month and it was great.
" I kind of rediscovered a town I knew a bit as a kid.
The album also features the single Never Gonna Stop, released 35 years after his first ever track Never Gonna Give You Up.
He said: "Never gonna, will I ever escape it? I wasn’t actually trying to make that connection I just sang it and then went… Can I do that? Then just didn’t think about it."
Along with the single, Rick Astley has released a music video featuring him singing on the beach in Denmark. The video was filmed entirely by his wife, on a mobile phone.
He said: "We’d run out of time to make a video because I’d been a bit sick. We just had a phone, and we just shot some stuff.
"The playback, so I could hear what I was listening to, was just my phone in my pocket. So it was done on a shoestring, about £4.20 it cost us in the end."
It's unlikely his next music video will be so cheap, as Hollywood actor Simon Pegg has been brought on to direct the project.
Rick Astley said: "He was at a festival I was playing at... and eventually we got to talking and I outright asked him if he wanted to direct a video.
"We’ve gone from a video on a phone, to this Hollywood film set."
Earlier this year, Rick Astley performed at Glastonbury for the first time.
The singer performed his set, a mix of new songs and old favourites before joining Stockport band, Blossoms for a surprise appearance.
He said: "The god’s were on our side that day. We got a huge audience, and I think they were just in the mood and the sun was out."
The 57 year old had already won the crowd with his hits and stunning covers from Cheshire superstar Harry Styles and AC/DC.
He then went on to sing some of The Smiths songs in a special tribute by Blossoms.
Rick Astley will be touring the North West at the start of next year, performing his previous hits alongside tracks from his latest album.
He said: "We start in February next year. In Manchester we’re doing the arena which is great. Then Liverpool as well, and then up and down the country."
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