You're Gorgeous hitmakers Babybird play The Joiners in Southampton on the Bad Old Man tour | Interview

While the band may be considered one-hit wonders by many, they actually scored eight top 40 singles, with the likes of Goodnight and The F-Word.

But as the fame slipped away, this singular and remarkably prolific artist returned to what he knows how to do best, crafting album after album of darkly-hued indie-pop as a one-man (with occasional outside help) cottage industry.

And he’s back on the road with The Bad Old Man tour, in honour of the 1998 single of the same name.

‘It's a favourite, we always play it,’ says Stephen. ‘It usually closes the set. I think it's some anniversary of that album – it was on the second band album (There’s Something Going On). When we were coming up with the idea, it was 20 or 25 years or something, I'm not sure. I don't like to think about these things too much!’

It was also the song which led to him working with Johnny Depp. The actor/musician is a fan who went on to appear on a couple of Babybird albums and directed a video for 2010’s single Unloveable.

‘I was lucky enough to meet him a way before that,’ he says recalling the video shoot, ‘and he’s got a dark sense of dark humour. It didn't do very well in terms of promoting things as there's a hanging and people being shot in it, and unless you're Lady Gaga, who did a hanging thing in a video, if you're that big you can get away with it, but little Babybird didn't…

‘It was an amazing experience, we were on a film set for three days.’

The video also feature acclaimed actor Stephen Graham, known for the intensity he brings to his roles.

‘I had seen This is England, and it was really weird – having to give him eye contact from three feet away was quite scary. He's a real laugh though – he's very giggly!’

You’re Gorgeous was on the gold-selling album, Ugly Beautiful – also the first to be recorded as a band, rather than Jones solo. After a string of band albums, he reverted to going it alone – but has a regular band for live shows.

‘That's how I started, before Ugly Beautiful,’ he explains, ‘I was doing lo-fi albums, I was literally on the kitchen table with a four track cassette player, making songs. When the Ugly Beautiful album came out, it went beyond our expectations, but I think because I started off very underground, that's what I've returned to.

‘The fame thing wasn't very much fun to be honest, and it's nice to be back where I am. It's like a job really, and I make enough money to pay for things. Because of those singles, You're Gorgeous, etc, I'm really lucky, that it means financially I've been able to carry on and do the music I want to do. I know it was a Marmite song, but it's enabled me to carry on doing this, and I'm 60 now. It's ridiculous that I'm still doing music!’

While he lacks a major label’s marketing muscle, he does get to do things entirely on his own terms – and he has an audience willing to sustain this business model.

‘It was the old punk days which inspired me when I began – I was 16-17, just after punk, when people would make flexidiscs and photocopy their own sleeves. Now I'm on Bandcamp, which is a similar thing. They do take a cut so they're like an invisible record label, but you can do anything you want on there, and there are no boundaries.

‘I still make my own stuff and do special, personal songs for people who want to pay the money. It just seems to carry on – it's a small band of fans, but they seem to like what I do.

‘I have to pinch myself everyday that I can still write music as a job – it's insane. And I feel like I'm doing a good job. People stick with it, I think the music gives them something – without sounding pretentious!’

And of course, there is another new album pending, called Bad Ideas.

‘I release loads of albums every year, but they're all very limited, and it's just the one thing I can do. I write quickly – I can't do anything else. Bad Ideas is probably the 170th album in 10 years, so I get very confused which ones have come out!’

When it comes to playing live, and with so many songs at his disposal, Stephen knows what people want to hear – and obliges, even if they like to rearrange things.

‘We have those songs people want to hear, like Good Night, Bad Old Man, Back Together, F-Word and all those –that one was on the Gordon Ramsey show, so people came to us through that even. And Unlovable. We get people ask if Depp's on guitar tonight? Sorry, no...’

This reminds Jones of the last time he saw the Hollywood actor and musician, earlier this year, and while the superstar was awaiting the verdict of his libel trial with ex-wife Amber Heard.

‘He was playing gigs over here with Jeff Beck. It was very surreal, we hadn't seen him for years, but I took the family and met him in the dressing room. He didn't seem concerned about the case at all. I wouldn't normally go to a gig like that, but it was great – you're not going to turn that down!’

Support on the Southampton date comes from acclaimed solo artist and former Pele/Amsterdam frontman, Ian Prowse.

‘He's probably a lot bigger than we are, but he supported us than the tour-but-one before, and he's a brilliant fella. Just fantastic – as is Tony Wright from Terrorvision (who’s supported on other dates on the tour). They're just really nice people, so why would you not want to be next to them in the dressing room? It's all very down to earth. I've met a fair few people who are completely up themselves who were put there by the record company. That was all part of the fame stuff – you would be put with people they thought was good for selling things.’

Babybird are at The Joiners in Southampton on Wednesday, November 30, supported by Ian Prowse. Tickets £17.50. Go to joiners.vticket.co.uk.