IAN Prowse is a refreshing breath of fresh air in a music industry so often caught up in image; where so much of it is style over substance.

Having supported Elvis Costello on tour around the UK and coming off a series of sell-out dates with his own band Amsterdam, this modern-day troubadour is now heading out on a series of acoustic shows including an intimate date at Barnoldswick Music and Arts Centre in a fortnight.

“I like the fact it is so small and intimate,” he said. “It gives you an opportunity to tell the story about the songs, to really connect with an audience.”

Ian’s ability to make those connections has led to what he believes is arguably the best time of his whole career. He’s also helped by the fact that he writes a mean song - his two most recent albums Here I Lie and One Hand on the Starry Plough, showcasing his abilities in the best way possible.

Ian first broke though as the driving force behind Pele, widely tipped to be the next big thing in the early 90s but disputes with the record company stalled that rise and the band ended. Ian then formed Amsterdam and despite gaining a devoted following, the band never really hit the big time.

But now the stars have aligned and the genial Scouser is finally getting the recognition his talent deserves.

“In the last 18 months I’ve probably got back to where I was in 1992, possibly even higher,” he said. “I feel like that Aesop’s fable about the tortoise and the hare.”

Ironically he cites the pandemic as being one of the reasons behind his career resurgence.

“We we halfway through touring with Elvis Costello when we went into lockdown,” he recalls. “We had just done a show at the Hammersmith Odeon and then that was it. I got home with loads of merchandise - T-shirts and albums - and just thought ‘what am I going to do?’ I’d no gigs, I needed to pay the rent.

“I just though I’d go online on a Friday night and see what happened.”

The Friday night session immediately took on a life of its own becoming a weekly event that fans made a point of tuning in to.

“It soon became a proper community,” said Ian. “From all the emails I got I knew that it was a really important focal point for people who were struggling. “It just became one point in the week people could hang out with each other and we could all live this weird experience together. It wasn’t just me singing my songs, it became like an old style variety show.”

Among the highlights of the weekly entertainment was a song performed by Ian’s daughter Rosalita - named after the Springsteen song.

“I heard Rosie humming my song Something’s Changed around the house and said ‘I didn’t know you can sing’. When she said she also knew the words I just said ‘right you’re up on Friday night’.

“The funny thing was that whenever Rosie sang the Paypal contributions went through the roof. I felt like some Victorian mill owner exploiting children.”

The Friday night sessions would often see several thousand joining in online.

“It worked because it was so interactive, said Ian. “I’d do all these mad cover versions that people requested. I think I turned about 1,000 people into alcoholics over the year or so we did it and it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done. That and the Costello tour made my career go right up.

“It has helped that the two records I’ve done recently Here I Lie and One Hand on the Starry Plough have been strong records with a lot of good songs on them. What is really important for me is that I’m an artistic going concern. So many artists have not written a good song for 30 years so for them it’s like heritage music now. I would never be comfortable with that.

“I love playing my old Pele songs or early Amsterdam songs but it’s really important that what I do now is fulfilling and hopefully as good as anything that we have ever done. That’s been the most satisfying aspect of the last couple of years.”

One Hand on the Starry Plough was released earlier this year and produced by Tony Kiley, formerly of the Blow Monkeys.

“I’d send him the demos and he came back ‘saying do you know what you’re doing here? There’s a feeling and spirit to them all, a feeling of optimism in these hard times’. I was too close to it, I had no idea but as a songwriter your subconscious kicks is and it led to this very coherent album.”

Ian is clearly enjoying life and admits his new-found success has allowed him to put things in perspective.

“With Pele, bands like Pulp and Cast supported us and then Britpop happened and every one of them went on to be big. We were stuck in litigation and I had just to sit back and watch, we couldn’t join in.

“For years I felt I’d missed out but now when I look at it for a lot of those at the time it has almost become like an albatross on them because they are just seen as Britpop.

“That was never us. I only write songs either about getting drunk or trying to change the world.

“Finally it’s as good as it’s ever been. It’s taken a lot of hard work and you do wonder if people have forgotten about you but I love it.

“What matters most is the music. If you think it is about you or making money then you’re going to mess up. I’ve seen this so many times. Just put the music front and centre of everything you do and you can’t fail if it’s good and stands up.”

For the Barnoldswick show Ian will be joined by original Pele fiddle player Andrea Nicholson.

“It’s probably the first time in 30 years that the two of us have done an acoustic show together,” said Ian.

Ian Prowse, Barnoldswick Music and Arts Centre, Thursday, October 12. Details from www.barnoldswickmusicandartscentre.com