Hi everyone!
I ask you a question. If Mark will no longer perform concerts, does it mean that the new album will be a radio album so that he can sell a lot and compensate for the missed revenues from the concerts? What do you think?
Mark has never written or recorded music to be radio friendly.
I think it is completely out of the question that he will now do something to please or accommodate anyone.
So far there is no official statement neither from MK management nor from Guy that he will play no more concerts.
There is no need for a statement. He told every audience during the DTRW tour that he was thinking of retiring. Although he kind of softened his position later on, the intention was still there.
I completely understand the people who want him to do more concerts, but do you
really want to see Mark struggle to play almost every song? In 2019 he stopped playing the solo in the outro of Sailing to Philadelphia and decided to add the sax at the end to disguise it; he struggled to play the outro solo to R&J, and so after a few concerts he cut it down and ended it without playing the trademark last lick in the solo; My Bacon Roll got disguised with the other instruments, Bonaparte slowed down; forgot the lyrics to HFOH quite a few times; some versions of Speedway at Nazareth were not good and he butchered the intro to MFN at least twice, that I remember. Brothers in Arms solo simplified... The tour also had its good moments, of course, but the clues that he can't play live anymore are endless. And that's fine, he's almost 73. I'm just not sure we, as a community of fans, want to see more of this. I would rather that he would concentrate on doing what he still does better than anyone, which is to write songs and make records.