Lulu

Reports of Lulu's demise appear to have been greatly exaggerated.

The pop legend recently intimated a desire to step back from the rigours of life on the road 61 years after releasing her debut single, but anyone taking her short run of summer shows as some sort of farewell appear to be wide of the mark.

A few songs into the first half of her career retrospective set in Fife, a clearly emotional Lulu was at pains to set the record straight. "I'm not retiring," she chirped, as the all-seated audience hung on her every word.

"Didn't you get the memo? I said I wasn't going to tour. I'm just doing things differently. You can see how much I love doing what I do – why would I give it up?"

Those words likely served as a reassurance for the diminutive veteran's fans at that point, given the sometimes unconvincing opening to the show.

Reworked in a slow funk stylee, Shout proved an interesting opener, while Lulu's sister Edwina stepped forward to share lead vocal duties on a punchy Heatwave.

The Boat That I Row kept the anthems coming, but it was clear that a recent virus had taken a temporary toll on the erstwhile Marie Lawrie's voice.

Nostalgia was all around with a huge screen delivering a constant stream of archive footage showing highlights from Lulu's career, and she frequently turned round to acknowledge the visual memories unfolding behind her.

It was clearly a moving experience for the star but her famed sense of humour remained firmly intact, having a laugh with her sibling and the audience at one point as she misread her notes.

"I sometimes forget," she quipped. "I have to have things written down. I'm 76!"

In one of the concert's more bizarre moments, the Glasgow-born chart-topper took a seat to sing along to a video of herself from 2002 duetting with late husband Maurice Gibb on the tear-jerker First Of May.

As a tribute it did its job, but it seemed a little over-the-top to have her excellent five-piece band standing idle for the duration of the number.

Lifting the mood again, the same musicians relished an edgy take on The Man Who Sold The World, the unlikely hit single that earned Lulu added street cred in 1974.

In a bold step, her rendition incorporated David Bowie's vocals from his Glastonbury 2000 performance of the haunting classic, but again it felt like some of the spontaneity was lost in the process.

The soulful I Could Never Miss You set her back on more familiar ground, with the first half ending in grand style with a massive To Sir With Love, Lulu showing her revered pipes remain formidably impressive.

A breathless conclusion saw another late great, Tina Turner, making a screen contribution on I Don't Wanna Fight, with Lulu's musical director and keys man Rick Krive lending his voice to a fine We've Got Tonight.

Relight My Fire, inevitably, got the arms waving in the stalls, before an unrestrained take on Elton John's I'm Still Standing and a full-blooded Shout – as it was back in '64 – made for an energetic finale to an enjoyable show.


Photo credit: Steve Gunn