NORTHERN rock treasure, Elkie Brooks, is gritting her teeth at the prospect of coming back to her roots 'up North' because of violence on the streets.

Salford-born Elkie is hoping to go down a storm on Tuesday July 3 when she performs at the Charter Theatre, Preston, as part of a nationwide tour.

But after living on South coast for most of her adult life rock singer Elkie says she prefers the peace and quiet of her Devonshire home to the crime-ridden streets of our smoky northern towns and cities.

And these days Elkie says she would love to leave the UK for good and settle overseas.

She said: "I live in a quiet area in Devon and actually want to move abroad -- it worries me returning to Northern cities because you always see trouble on the streets."

For this latest concert Elkie, 56, has introduced some new material which she hopes will appeal to young people of Preston -- although she knows the older generation will be calling for Pearl's a Singer and other Elkie classics.

She said: "I am trying to promote my new album Strange Fruit but there are some fans who would be disappointed if I didn't include favourites like No More the Fool and Pearl's a Singer.

"The new album is very up to date but stems from all my influences over the years, such as Billie Holiday, Chuck Berry and more recent artists like Craig David, Shaggy and Anastacia.

"It's actually quite off the wall -- one of the tracks is called Naked in September which is quite tribal or pagan -- I got the idea while driving past Stonehenge."

But after 40 years on the road Elkie believes she still has what it takes to show an audience a good time and says she has lots to offer the young people of Preston as well as faithful fans.

For bookings and further details call 258858.