So much hype surrounds Babyshambles that it is easy to forget what made them so special in the first place.

Pete Doherty has become a household name in Britain not for his music but because of his drug addictions, court appearances and love life.

The fact most people do not understand his music makes him more appealing to his fans.

Watching Doherty is always a spectator sport and everyone at the Brighton Centre on Sunday night expected him to misbehave.

But he was on his best behaviour, looking sober and sipping the same pint of lager throughout his set, and the gig was all about his music.

Disappointingly, there was no vomiting on stage, falling over or attacking photographers.

Surprisingly, this was a professional performance.

He came on stage looking very much like the rock idol he has become, wearing a black military jacket and tight trousers.

And for the entire evening he never stood still, swaying and staggering, bouncing and leaping onto the drum set as though he was getting carried away during a private jamming session.

Doherty has never been one for crowd interaction and his occasional mumbles to the crowd, though greeted by cheers, were sometimes lost in translation.

But his music was spot on and he couldn't have been a starker contrast to the jacked-up junkie portrayed by the media.

"What a shambles" are the lyrics of the band's title track - certainly not.