INTERVIEW: SWEET IN CONVERSATION WITH ANDY SCOTT
Interview by Cecilia Pattison-Levi
Interview by Cecilia Pattison-Levi
Iconic British glam and heavy rockers Sweet, led by the sole remaining original member, legendary guitarist Andy Scott, will be touring Australia in October and November on the Final Blitz Tour.
Sweet’s chart-topping hits have been featured in blockbuster films like Marvel’s ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy’, the comedy ‘Hot Fuzz’, ‘Dark Phoenix’ and the TV shows in 2026’s ‘Euphoria’, and the band continue to be the soundtrack to countless good times. I had the honour of sitting down with guitarist and original member Andy Scott, and as a long-time listener, it was a joy to hear him speak so fondly of the band in anticipation of their Australian tour.
Andy Scott will be joined by lead vocalist Paul Manzi, bassist Lee Small, guitarist and keyboardist Tom Cory, and drummer Adam Booth, and will deliver all of Sweet’s biggest songs on this final greatest hits tour. The songs that audiences can expect to hear will include ‘Ballroom Blitz’, ‘Fox On The Run’, ‘Love Is Like Oxygen’, ‘Wig Wam Bam’, ‘Blockbuster’, ‘Teenage Rampage’, ‘Hell Raiser’, ‘Action’, and ‘Peppermint Twist’, and many more.
“All those songs…the setlist kind of writes itself,” explained Andy Scott. “I mean ‘Peppermint Twist’ has to be there with the hits. We are lucky we have such a large back catalogue of over 300 songs. What we are going to do is play songs from 1970 through to 2025’s ‘Full Circle’ album. We have been so lucky to have so many songs that are so well known. It is a wonderful feeling when songs and setlists all come together.”
Emerging from the UK’s glam rock scene of the 1970s, Sweet have sold over 55 million records worldwide and released nine studio albums (not counting the solo albums by Andy Scott). “What is it like hearing your songs at the shopping centre?” repeated Andy Scott. “Well, it’s the best feeling ever. A song you have written, and it is being enjoyed by so many people. It’s special. But you can’t let it go to your head – everyone probably has one song in them - but Sweet were blessed with more than one song.”
Sweet and their music, that runs the gamut from pop-rock, to glam rock and heavy rock, have resonated with Australian music fans throughout the years. The band has racked up an impressive 13 Top 50 Australian Singles, including number ones with ‘The Ballroom Blitz’, ‘Fox On The Run’ and the strange No. 4 hit, “like a bullet up the charts” called ‘Peppermint Twist’. “It’s an odd story about that song ‘Peppermint Twist’,” explained Andy Scott. “We got this call about the song. Sweet had released an album in 1974 called ‘Sweet Fanny Adams’ and this song, that was a cover of the Joey Dee and the Starliters original, was on the album. Someone on Australian radio started playing it. They released it as a single. It raced up the charts. We had no idea it was happening. But it became so popular. So, I guess due to its special place in Australian music history, we will make sure we play it.”
Sweet are still busy with touring. Andy Scott’s schedule is impressive: “We are playing shows, festivals, joining up with Suzi Quatro, and playing our own headline concerts around Britain. I am looking forward to playing in Portmeirion in Wales over the summer. When we come to Australia, we are going to have recovery time between shows and enjoy this last tour. It’s great that we are going to play at the Palais Theatre in Melbourne where we played in the 1970s. It’s a great rock venue. I think we have played the Princess Theatre in Brisbane before as well.”
Sweet are one of the most successful rock bands of all time, and this is the last time to see them live on their Final Blitz Tour. It will be a set of shows that fans will not want to miss: as the Sweet song says, “where it starts is where it ends, Full Circle.”
