<p>The singer-songwriter on her rock’n’roll past, playing second fiddle to the Beatles, and the key to being an energetic performer in your 80s</p><p>Born Elaine Bookbinder in Salford in 1945, Elkie&nbsp;Brooks is a rock, blues and jazz singer known as the British Queen of Blues. She spent much of the 1960s on the caba

<p>The singer-songwriter on her rock’n’roll past, playing second fiddle to the Beatles, and the key to being an energetic performer in your 80s</p><p>Born Elaine Bookbinder in Salford in 1945, Elkie&nbsp;Brooks is a rock, blues and jazz singer known as the British Queen of Blues. She spent much of the 1960s on the cabaret circuit, during which time she&nbsp;supported the Beatles. She joined Dada in 1970, before forming Vinegar Joe with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/sep/27/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries">Robert Palmer</a> in 1971. She went solo after their split, breaking through with Pearl’s a Singer and Sunshine After the Rain, scoring 13 UK Top 75 singles. A celebration of six decades in music, The Long Farewell Tour, is now on the road.</p><p><strong>This is me in a white jumpsuit outside the Royal Albert Hall in London.</strong> I&nbsp;have very few memories of the gig, but I know I would have felt daunted as it’s such a large venue. To overcome the nerves, I’d have tried to focus on the music and remembered, “It’s just another gig.”</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/sep/13/elkie-brooks-looks-back-interview-singer-the-long-farewell-tour">Continue reading...</a>