Star rating: ****
Texas always had two things going for them: an abundance of memorable tunes and the voice of Sharleen Spiteri. Both attributes remained firmly in place on Spiteri's debut solo album Melody, released last summer, with additional hints of torch-song heartbreak and some fashionably retro stylings, nodding to Motown, Serge Gainsbourg, ye-ye girls, Dusty Springfield and Lee Hazelwood and Nancy Sinatra. In a musical landscape dominated by Amy, Adele and Duffy, it was hardly an original transformation, but it worked particularly well on stage.
Dressed in black sixties chic, Spiteri gave an extremely good show, injecting the songs with a personality their recorded versions often lack. Opening with the starkly dramatic Francoise, she hit her stride immediately. Though the set was studded with Texas hits - including Black Eyed Boy, Halo and a final encore of Inner Smile - the solo material more than held its own. Her excellent seven-piece band performed throughout with verve and versatility, particularly during a well-judged semi-acoustic interlude that succeeded - as was surely the intention - in keeping the ever-present threat of stifling slickness at bay: double-bass and brushes transformed I Don't Want a Lover into a freight-train country shuffle, while Spiteri indulged herself with a feisty cover of These Boots Are Made for Walking.
A clunky bongos-led stab at the Clash's Should I Stay or Should I Go was misguided, but it proved to be an exception. Having squeezed every ounce of juice from Stop I Don't Love You Anymore, Spiteri returned for an encore wearing a bright red dress, every inch the soul siren. She looked genuinely exhilarated and had every right to be.
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