Talking to singer-songwriter Steve Harley on the phone from his home in North Essex, I begin our conversation with a heartfelt thank you.

Back in 2007, I put a tenner on Cockney Rebel, the horse named after Steve’s band, after hearing him tip it for success on the radio despite it being a 25-1 outsider.

A few hours later and Cockney Rebel had won the 2,000 Guineas and I was in the pub counting my winnings.

“That’s fantastic,” laughs Steve, who remains a keen racegoer.

“I don’t own any horses at the moment but that could change tomorrow.

“They’re very expensive and it’s like throwing £50 notes into the turf and standing on them, but I keep studying the form and a couple of my friends are professional gamblers and it remains my passion.”

After a summer of outdoor shows with a full rock band, Steve returns to the more intimate UK concert halls this winter with his acoustic trio line-up, accompanied by virtuoso players and long-standing Cockney Rebel members, James Lascelles (piano/percussion) and Barry Wickens (violin/guitar/mandolin) with a gig at Wrexham’s Aston Hall on Saturday, November 19.

“It’s wonderful with just the three of us,” says Steve.

“To be up there with them is really exciting and when we come off we just know people are buzzing about the show and it’s a lovely feeling.

“We’ve got the freedom to explore and I love it.”

Steve was born in Deptford, south London, in 1951 and worked as a local newspaper journalist before venturing on stage with his guitar.

“I came out of the folk clubs and I’m used to playing alone,” he says.

“Having two other people on stage is like having a crowd for me.

“It’s what I do and I’m very happy because the three shows I’ve done so far on this tour have been three of the best nights of my life.

“I’ve played thousands of concerts, but there’s a little buzz going on with these ones and we’re really enjoying it.”

Steve formed Cockney Rebel in 1972 and by 1974 they were in the UK Top Ten with Judy Teen and Mr Soft, but it is for 1975’s classic single Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me) that they will always be remembered.

Written about the acrimonious split of the original Cockney Rebel, the song reached number one, has sold about 1.5 million copies worldwide and despite being one of the most played records in the history of British radio, Steve never tires of it.

“Not playing your hits is churlish and petulant,” he says.

“I’m proud of my big hits and I sing them sometimes and think ‘that’s quite an interesting lyric, I wonder what I was feeling?’.

“I’ve seen people singing Make Me Smile on ferries crossing the North Sea and Dutch truck drivers singing it at karaoke.

“I walked into a hotel lobby in Brussels about six years ago after being out for dinner and, as I was getting in the lift, I heard it blasting out at a Christmas party.

“Everyone was on the dance floor and I just stood and watched and nobody knew it was me who’d written it.

“I was talking to Bryan Adams once at an awards ceremony and he said, ‘I’ve just heard your song on the radio.’ I looked at him, winked and said ‘which one’?

“I was telling him I’d let it be used on an advert and I was worried it was like prostitution, to which he replied, ‘the song’s just doing its job’.

“You write these songs and some people are precious, but I think there’s a sense of pride because it’s you that’s written it, owns it and makes money from it and you want people to hear it, otherwise why are you bothering?”

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Cockney Rebel’s Timeless Flight album, a collection that Steve believes is his favourite of his albums, and much of the material will be explored again by the trio on this tour.

“I call it the naughty child that became a favourite,” he says.

“It was slightly experimental and I’m playing five tracks from it on this tour, two of which I’d never played live before.

“I was only 25 in 1976 and I just did what I wanted to do at that age and we thought it was going to be a monster hit and even though it wasn’t I’m still very proud of that album.”

Also making Steve proud is the fact that Sir Rod Stewart, who has recorded his song A Friend For Life on his latest platinum-selling album, described Steve as “one of the finest lyricists Britain has ever produced”.

“Rod’s one of the great song writers,” he adds.

“I offered it to him 10 years ago and he didn’t get it, but now he’s had these two lovely boys with Penny Lancaster and he gets it because it’s a difficult lyric about children growing up and leaving the nest.

“I thanked him by buying him a fish supper in a very expensive restaurant in Mayfair.”

Steve Harley plays Wrexham’s William Aston Hall on Saturday, November 19 at 7.30pm. To book tickets call 0844 888 9991 or visit www.glndwr.ac.uk