Read And Learn

What does a day in your life at the moment look like, Michael?

Well, currently the thing seems to be playing in West End theaters, covering for the principal players. I’m not a chair holder, as it were. I just come in and dep for some lovely people. I finished a decade of fairly heavy touring last year. It began with the Thriller Live tour in 2009, and it was travelling around Europe, but then it spread to places like China, and Israel, and Egypt. That was very last-minute—I had the call two nights previously. I said to them that I couldn’t read music, but I could learn, and if they sent the audio, then I’d be all right in a couple of nights.

You never learned to read music as a kid?

I came up just learning in my room, just hearing records, and going to concerts and looking at the hands of players. I remembered what they played, and then headed