Colin Vearncombe is not your ordinary pop star. Not yet anyway, but give him time. He's still too full of the youthful enthusiasm and excitement of a fledgling star to be fashionably arrogant or conceited - and a healthy dose of cynicism should keep him that way. Vearncombe, better known as Black, is still riding the crest of a wave of European popularity following his debut international album, Wonderful Life, which has sold a million copies worldwide and gained enough airplay in Australia to prompt a promotional tour. Less than fresh from a prolonged voyage in Japan, which was enough to take a lot of the gloss off his new-found star, Vearncombe made a whistle stop tour of Adelaide last week.
Vearncombe took the name Black from a trio he was with in 1981, which released one single on a small independent label. The band disbanded in 1983, leaving Vearncombe holding the title. The evolution of a pop performer from garage to pub gigs to stardom can easily affect some performers and Black, despite his relatively short term of popularity, is already wearying with the "album, promotion, concert" merry-go-round all pop artists get trapped on. But mainly he's sick of the promotion.
"All the stuff they build up around you, the Star stuff, annoys me," he said wearily. "I mean, I've got nothing against being a sex symbol and all that, and I'd much rather have knickers thrown on stage than teddy bears, but it's not really something I'm into. "Some of the stuff written about me makes me come across as the most pompous ass in the world, but we have a saying with Black - don't take any of it too seriously. It's the music that matters."
So far Black has attracted more teddy bear throwers for fans than lingerie distributors but his international stage time has been limited. His managers decided this time around that it was far too early for Black to "take his music to the people" so his contact with the public has been limited to the media - an experience he has found less than uplifting. Vearncombe wrote the powerful lyrics and melodies for most of the songs on Wonderful Life and has already prepared enough material for a follow-up album to be released in Britain later this year. He believes that simple, although thoughtful, lyrics are best and sneers at pop musicians who believe that pop is art.
"What I aim for in my performance is good strong vocals, which is something I've really had to work at because I'm certainly not a natural, strong melodies and good lyrics. One of the good things about this whole touring business is that I've travelled a lot more than I had before the first album, and I've met a lot more people and made more observances so my next album will be a real progression although my values will stay the same. I've always wanted to be my own favorite pop group and I'm getting towards that."