it bothers me that Ferry needs to use a music stand to remember the lyrics - I just wish he would do without it - get away from the mike stand and move a bit....I guess I just miss the old Ferry - when he would slink around the stage with the brilliant stagecraft...gone now and reduced to minimal stuff and limited body language....tied to the mike stand (and music stand!!!)

It's not just song lyrics, he has a setlist (understandable) and the names of his band and support act taped to the floor by the music stand. I thought that he was using it as a prop during the ASGB tour but other than the Roxy 2001 tour he's used it ever since. Given his entrance in 2001 leaving the piano during re-make/re-model did this change on the following Roxy tours? To be fair he's not by himself using a music stand and being more static in his movements now, I was suprised how much Bowie used one and stayed close to the microphone stand during his later tours (except for the reality tour I think)

I go to a lot of concerts and there are lots of acts who use lyric book or sheets on stage, not just older acts either. I guess the more songs you have in your back catalogue the more likely you might be to forget a couple of lines here and there. I think perhaps it's more of a safety blanket than a nesseccity.

Yes it is a shame that Bryan is attached so much to his music stand and lyrics. I long for the days when he prowled the stage and jumped after almost every song. Though with a bad back I can understand why he no longer does the latter!

Like others I do this think he uses the lyrics as a safety blanket...just in case. But I also wonder whether he uses them as a prop due to insufficient rehearsal...either through lack of time given to rehearse or a disinclination to rehearse. I don't know how long Roxy Music or Bryan and his solo band would generally give to rehearse...I don't know how long any musician rehearses. I suppose you could say how long's a piece of string, everybody would be different. All I can say is that Leonard Cohen, who at 73 can give Bryan 10 years, rehearsed with his band for 3 months before going back on the road for the first time in 14/15 years early in 2008. Some of the lyrics of Leonard's songs are at least as complicated as Bryan's, some more so. In performance Leonard sings everything from memory, not a music stand or lyric sheet in sight.

So is it mental agility or lack of reheasal????