SINGAPORE — When is a concert not just a concert? When it’s a really good concert, said veteran singer Leo Sayer. The singer, best known for hits such as When I Need You, You Make Me Feel Like Dancing and More Than I Can Say (which he calls “the big three”), performs tomorrow at the Esplanade Concert Hall.

“What makes the live show tick? I think it’s about the character of the person on stage,” said Sayer, who turns 67 this year. “The pop singer or rock singer can actually open his heart bigger than any politician or public speaker. You really are seeing the soul. They write songs about their hearts, their lives, their weaknesses, their emotions, their strengths. When you see someone like that, you’re witnessing someone who is really giving their all (and) the concert becomes a one-on-one experience with the audience.”

He continued: “When I see someone like that, I feel like they’re talking to only me and singing only to me. That’s why pop or rock is still one of the most powerful art forms in the world. You’re trying to create an event — not just a gig. One concert can be a very important moment in someone’s life. It sure is for me! It’s keeping me young! It’s very cathartic, it’s a huge release — an emotional, spiritual and intellectual release.”

That’s one of the reasons, he said, that a lot of veteran performers are still drawing in the crowds, despite not having a chart hit in years. The bulk of Sayer’s big hits all hail from the ’70s and early ’80s — although he did have a joint British No 1 in 2006, when Thunder In My Heart was remixed by Meck.

“Live shows are the core of the music industry,” he elaborted. “People like Sade, Seal or Kate Bush, or Bruce Springsteen or The Rolling Stones just deliver on stage. They’re bigger than the records. It’s not about the records, it’s about the live show.

“Some of the newer singers, they concentrate so much on the records, but apart from the big spectacle — the dancers, the lights — they don’t have much by way of content in the show. They are not stand-out entertainers in the old school kind of way,” he added. “(The older musicians) know how to do that — to grab and audience and work it to give them something exciting. And suddenly the audience feels involved in the show. That’s the magic that I think the old school guys know how to do ... to flick that switch that makes people have an incredible time and come away really happy. People want that. And maybe the newer acts can’t do that yet.”

Another reason for his continued musical longevity and his popularity in Asia, he said, was the invention of this crazy little thing called karaoke. “The songs have grown in stature because of that,” he said. “That really brought a whole new audience for me. When I Need You and You Make Me Feel Like Dancing are big karaoke hits. So my show is a little more than, ‘Who’s this old guy from the 70s? Do we need to see him again?’ I’ve been playing in China and they seem to love me there. I think the Asian audience has grown because of the popularity of karaoke. It’s quite exciting.”

And just what can Singapore expect for his show tomorrow? “I think the last time I played in Singapore was 40 years ago, if I remember correctly. But now, 40 years later, I’m an even better performer! I think the show is more exciting, with lots going on and of course. There have been about five or six more hits since then! (laughs)

“I’m what I call a quiet storm,” he added. “When I perform on stage, I guess people come along to expect the big three but I like it ... when people go, ‘Okay, let’s just see what this guy has’ and they all come out of the concert — every time — going ‘wow, I didn’t know you did that as well’. You know, songs like Giving It All Away, Long Tall Glasses, One Man Band and Orchard Road, which takes its name from Orchard Road in Singapore. I hope people in Singapore go, ‘That Leo Sayer – he was good’.”

Leo Sayer performs tomorrow, 7.30pm at the Esplanade Concert Hall. Tickets from SISTIC.