STEVE Harley makes no bones about it – he’s a major technophobe.

“Oh man, try having a conversation these days… even on the tour bus, with guys in their 40s and 50s, you have to prise them away from their Blackberries, or iPods and iPhones, or whatever.

“I’m trying to talk about the show and they’re emailing or texting or whatever. Come on, nobody’s that important they can’t wait while you talk to a real live human being.”

It’s one of several little skips we willingly take down Grumpy Old Men Street – from computer thesauri and comments on internet forums to Emma Thompson’s recent rant about teenagers’ slang.

“She’s a silly woman sometimes, but she has a point about that. I’m sick of hearing ‘innit’ – what is that?”

Probably no more than today’s version of an earlier generation’s adoption of the word “man” as a familiarity.

“Yes, I suppose that was our dope-induced affectation. I don’t think teenagers would use that unless they wanted to sound like their dads… or granddads!”

Steve’s coming back to Bournemouth – to play the O2 Academy on Monday – for the first time in years.

“I don’t know the last time I played there. I remember staying at the Royal Bath Hotel in 1975 and breaking out from the suite to walk on the roof in the middle of the night – can’t think why, but it must have made sense at the time!”

The O2 show is part of an acoustic tour billed as A Closer Look in which Steve will showcase his new album Stranger Comes To Town, as well as revisit his biggest hits from Mr Soft to Sebastian, Judy Teen and Mr Raffles.

He’s promising to play at least one song from every album he’s made since Cockney Rebel’s 1973 debut, The Human Menagerie.

“It’s a nightmare learning lyrics, though. I’m locked away rehearsing for hours because there are so many words and so many chord changes, the only way to do it is by repetition.

“It’s no different to how I learned lines on the two occasions I’ve done theatrical plays.”

But he finds it hard to hide his glee at putting those songs in an acoustic setting.

“Oh, there’s no hiding place when it’s just three of us on stage.

“You can’t hide behind the noise of a rock band setting and the sheer sexual energy of rock music.

“Those songs are laid bare, exposed – and you have to give it your all, or you fall flat on your face.

“And the most magical thing is hearing yourself singing a song that’s 35 years old and a little light going on in your head, ‘Ah, that’s what I meant’.

“It’s wonderful the way songs can reveal themselves to you like that.”

Of course, there’s one song that always brings the house down – Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me).

A number one hit all over the world on its release in 1975, it has since become one of those songs that have slipped into the collective consciousness.

Everyone knows it – and Steve has to play it every night.

“To not play it would be churlish, obviously.

“It’s an odd thing – I’ve been on YouTube and there are dozens of clips of people just playing it, so there’s an element of everyone having a piece of it.

“Except they don’t, it’s mine.

“It’s a great song to have to close the set with, which I always do, I wouldn’t want to follow it with anything.

“Plus, it can be different every night, because the melody is half spoken, so I’m always finding new ways into the song.

“To have a hit is one thing, but to have a classic – that’s something else.

“I was in a hotel in Oslo about four years ago and I’d just come back in, around midnight and there was this company do going on with a couple of thousand people, all a bit drunk.

“I strolled over to have a look and people were snogging, the ties were off, you know the kind of thing.

“The DJ was playing some music, but the dance floor was deserted. Then I heard it, the intro (to Make Me Smile)… and people were rushing past me to get to the dance floor. That was quite magical.

“I did Glastonbury again this year and we played to 15,000 people and they were singing the words back at me.

“Not all artists will talk about their best known songs like this… but it’s just a gas to come on and know you’ve got that song to finish with.”