He walked on stage - plain shirt and old man's trousers - looking like the kind of bloke you might share a fag and a pint of bitter with at your local.

But, as soon as he started to sing, he became Mick Hucknall - star, singer and frontman of Simply Red.

He has the magic, presence, talent and appeal of a star who has already made his mark and will be around for a long time to build on that reputation.

He may be known in the tabloids as a bit of a Jack the lad but, on stage, there was no fooling around.

For 90 minutes, he sang his heart out. And what a voice, never failing, often stretched to its limits, raw, passionate, true, melodic and powerful.

His entire face sang. Projected on to giant screens, the packed, adoring crowd could see every line and muscle oozing the rock melodies.

And, unlike some stars, he was happy to mix and match the old with the new - hits such as Infidelity and Fairground and the title track of the latest album, Home.

All this with the superb backing skills of the band. Plus stunning guitar, sax and keyboard solos.

And the crowd at the Brighton Centre loved it - they sang, they clapped and cheered and there was even some girlie screams.

I started the evening not particularly a fan - sorry Mick. But by the end I was simply converted.

Review by Tina Mills, features@theargus.co.uk