FOR the five years Eric Cantona graced Old Trafford, Manchester United fans would serenade their hero with the chant "Ooh aah Cantona". Now, some 27 years after he retired from football, he's singing back.
The mercurial French playmaker is on a 14-date tour, which started in Rotterdam last night and takes in London and Manchester, just days after the release of his debut live album Cantona Sings Eric First Tour Ever, with songs recorded from performances last year.
His move into music should come as no surprise. This renaissance man has already successfully re-invented himself as an actor and has also dabbled in painting and poetry.
"I have been passionate about the arts since forever," the 57-year-old says from his home in Lisbon. "I was always sure that after sport I would express myself in the world of art, and different kind of arts. And if I had the chance to share it with audiences, especially in a theatre or playing music, I knew I would love it. I love the energy of the fans, which is why I wanted to do music."
It all started last year, when Cantona released an EP of four tracks and played a series of gigs across the UK and Europe, kicking off, inevitably, in Manchester. That night at Stoller Hall was the first time he'd played his songs in front of an audience and was a journey into "another world, completely unknown, with no experience at all.
And I liked it, I liked the adventure.
"I hadn't even played in a bar. I'm crazy enough to expose myself to the world like this. It was a great night for everybody." It seems particularly exposing as there are only two musicians with him, a pianist and a cellist; it's not like playing football with 10 teammates. "People told me it's the hardest way to start, there's nowhere to hide.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 03, 2024 من Evening Standard.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 03, 2024 من Evening Standard.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Vamos Rafa! It's time to go for Spain's brave warrior
'Shy and funny' Nadal bows out as sport's ultimate competitor
Does Angeball have a winning future at Spurs?
Head coach divides supporters with his ultra-attacking tactics
The £5bn-a-year tax timebomb that's set to devastate London hospitality
The capital will bear the brunt of Rachel Reeves’s National Insurance raid
Live like a Queen...
...in the house gifted to Anne of Cleves by Henry VIII in 1540 and now onsale for 3.75 million
At home with...Matthew Williamson
The designer’s Belsize Park flatis a grand canvas for his ever-changing colour palette
Hidden London
The first time I made my way to Maison Assouline was with a broken foot, in a tragic boot and crutches.
Jameela Jamil on why New York will always have her heart...
..and her stomach. The actor and activist shares her favourite brunch spot, a secret bar and her brownstone fantasies
My life in bespoke suits
Back in the Eighties, suits were so wide that even the shoulder pads had shoulder pads. Suits back then were boxy, square, and designed to make you look like a quarterback, a bouncer or a tank.
Cher's wild world
The singer's memoir is full of jaw-dropping tales
'I was told I could stay in the UKthen kicked out of my asylum accommodation'
As our appeal hits 1m, we turn the spotlight on an official policy that’s making newly recognised refugees homeless
