Having been able to see for miles
I’m from a Gorbals family, but when I was small we moved to a new high-rise in Toryglen on Glasgow’s south side. In time it became a pretty infamous housing scheme, but for the first few years it was great, and with elevators and central heating we felt ourselves to be at the forefront of contemporary living. Dad was a builder, mum a shop assistant, and I had two younger brothers. In fact, it was like I had three because the family next door were having some problems and their son came to lunch one day and ended up staying for 12 years. We were bang in the middle of our block on the 11th of 22 floors and the views were fantastic. It was as if you could see the whole world from our windows. Not having travelled yet, it seemed full of possibilities, even if I didn’t know quite what they were.

A lifelong mate called Charlie
I met Charlie Burchill when I was eight. His brother was the local cool kid, the first to own copies of Electric Ladyland and Ziggy Stardust, and through him Charlie had access to this fascinating world of music. I’m not much of a one for looking back, but the fact that that he and I should have ended up forming a band [Simple Minds] and dreaming up songs that made a connection with people all around the world [they have sold more than 25 million records] is overwhelming to me. I’ve been so blessed to have a career that’s given me so much pleasure, never mind what it’s done for other people. And Charlie’s still my best friend. He lives in Rome now, but to this day I’m excited when I pick up the phone and find it’s him on the line.

Having survived a roller-coaster ride
No one gives you a manual telling you how to deal with success. Thanks to reality TV you can go from being totally unknown to humongous virtually overnight, but I was fortunate in that we reached the big league incrementally, over the course of several albums. I think everyone would be disappointed if you didn’t go off your nut just a little. But I became a father [during a first marriage to Chrissie Hynde] just as it was happening for us, so although the oxygen got thin at times, my sense of responsibility always kicked in. Nor was I ever really part of the celebrity circuit, though going on to marry Patsy [Kensit, his second wife] changed that somewhat. From those two relationships I’ve got a daughter aged 23 and a son, 16. How much more sophisticated are they than I was at their ages? Come to think of it, to be more sophisticated than I was wouldn’t be hard.

An appetite for change
I’ve always been restless. At school, I was fascinated by projects about other countries – Brazil, Iceland, wherever. Then, aged 18, Charlie and I hit the road on our own “Huckleberry Finn meets Jack Kerouac” adventure. It all started because we’d heard about the punk scene that had begun in London and decided to hitch our way down there to check it out. It’s amazing what can happen if you stick your thumb out by the side of the road. This lorry driver told us he was going all the way to France; we got ourselves temporary passports and just kept on going. That same restlessness is still with me today, and though I’ve been spending time in Taormina, Sicily, for ten years now and have created a hotel, I can see myself living in a totally different set of circumstances somewhere down the line. Once a dreamer...

www.hotelvillaangela.com. Simple Minds perform their album New Gold Dream on their 30th anniversary tour, starting at the MEN Arena, Manchester on November 27 (0871 4244444, www.ticketline.co.uk)

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