Gilbert O'Sullivan still has plenty to say about his songs and albums which dominated the charts in the early 1970s. A clash over royalties disrupted his career in the 1980s, but the self-confessed, hermit-like Jersey-based star tells Viv Hardwick what drives him to keep touring.

THOSE of us with a twenty-something relative called Clair will probably blame the fact on a certain 1972 hit record dedicated to his manager's daughter by Gilbert O'Sullivan. More than 30 years later the charm, naivet and innocence of the song linked to the Irishman's cloth cap and Chaplineseque stage costume remains a crowd-pleaser.

But the singer - now 57 and based in Jersey for the past 18 years - confesses he wouldn't be taking his trusty piano out on tour again if it was all about recalling the days of millions-selling memory lane.

"I want another hit record and to be mentioned as a songwriter in the same breath as Paul Simon, Ray Davies and Leonard Cohen," explains the curly-haired performer who will be appearing at York's Opera House next Wednesday.

And for a self-confessed "non-socaliser" away from the stage, O'Sullivan is forthright about the treatment of his songs and why he finds it so hard to gain bookings in regional centres like Newcastle, Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham.

The Waterford accent was left behind at 12 when Raymond Edward O'Sullivan's family moved to Swindon. Now it's the merest of background lilts as he reflects on a career which has earned royalties around the world, including a recent No 1 hit in Japan.

"Basic shyness is inbred and no matter what you become there's nothing unusual about being the kind of person who can stand on stage and perform to 2,000 people and, on the other hand, being the kind of person who doesn't mingle and doesn't socialise.

"I love touring, but I wouldn't want to be bothered at home by anybody. I love to meet people who are interested in you and every two years I bring out a new album and this time there's a new album and The Berry Vest Of release. The only difference between me and a lot of performers is that I only do it for three months and I spend about nine months writing, whereas a lot of people spend nine months on the road because it's compulsive. But you'll find me on stage for two hours giving everything I've got in the hope that I entertain."

Asked about his one appearance in the North being York he replies: "You tell me where you think we should go and I'll tell why we're not going there, because you're making a good point.

"The reason we don't come back to Newcastle is that the theatres don't want us. We've been trying to get back to Glasgow since 1978 and we once managed to get a little theatre by the skin of our teeth. It's very frustrating because people write and say 'you're touring, but not coming to our neck of the woods' and you have to make them aware that some theatres don't want you.

"Even though I sold 100,000 albums this year, they still see me as a risk factor and I can't argue with that. Ultimately, venues can say 'you're not good enough, on your bike'.

"The only reason I'm talking to you is that I'm releasing new product. If the only thing available on the market today was The Berry Vest Of I wouldn't be talking to you... that is pure nostalgia. So the reason I'm on the road is that EMI took the latest album, Piano Foreplay, and, because of that, they got the latest compilation in 14 years."

He is determined to remain a contemporary writer rather than stuck in the timewarp created by his "overnight success" with No 8 hit single Nothing Rhymed.

"It's true during the mid-1980s because of legal problems I wasn't seen much and the key to everything I do is writing songs. I was still consistently writing during that period but I just didn't have that high profile and wasn't having the success of the early days. So naturally people would say 'what the hell happened to you?' and they are amazed you're still making records."

He explains that Radio 2 has become Radio 1-and-a-half following Radio 1's decision not to play music by older performers which means his newer tracks are now competing for airtime with George Michael, Elton John and David Bowie.

"People like me are suddenly sidelined after being Radio 2's staple diet. So I get very little exposure now because they figure I'm not good enough even for them," he says.

However, morning music-chat show host Jeremy Vine dropped a clanger recently when he played an O'Sullivan record and promised more "in another 20 years or so". So many complaints arrived on email that Vine ended up inviting O'Sullivan to play live on air.

The singer's biggest supporter on Radio 2 remains Steve Wright and O'Sullivan also adds his tribute to the mass of words honouring John Peel because in 1967 when the DJ moved to Radio 1 to host Top Gear he gave the singer his airtime debut.

"It was a magic moment and he was fully supportive of unknown people but it's a paradox because when you were successful he completely ignored you. But his remit was to help the underdog and to my dying day I will remember that first radio broadcast. I've still got the Radio Times from that day. I've even got the three or four fan letters that went to him which mentioned me," he says. Even though he spends eight hours a day on his own work, O'Sullivan also finds time to listen to new artists and currently he likes the work of Rufus Wainwright, the Scissor Sisters and Ed Harcourt.

"Ed Harcourt's only young and I bought his album, which has some quite good tracks, but it is kind of depressing when one of them is called Born In The 70s. My God, that really makes you feel old," he jokes.

"I'm a very hermit-like figure really, I don't drive and I'm pretty much a stay-at-home person and therefor, Jersey has been great for that. Having said that I can write anywhere as long as I have the solitude, but what is better is that my wife Ase has a good social life knowing that her husband is locked away in his room. It's a good place to raise children as well," he says of his life in the Channel Islands.

His older daughter is 23-year-old Helen-Marie while 19-year-old Tara is at Lancaster University.

"She called the other week and said 'dad, dad, my friends are really impressed because Morrissey used to like you'," he jokes.

* Gilbert O'Sullivan: The Berry Vest of Tour, Grand Opera House, York, Wednesday. Box Offiuce: 08706 063595.

Published: 04/11/2004