SMOKEY ROBINSON (London Hammersmith Apollo, 11/07/25)

Initial signs weren't promising: 15 minutes of pre-gig ads and self-promo then terribly ropey sound for the first couple of songs. But once the Motown legend found his groove things rapidly improved, particularly when he hit the 'Temptations' portion of the set- I mean, this was the man who wrote fucking "My Girl" for God's sake. Some weird setlist choices drained the momentum later on, but The Big Hits did not disappoint and when Smokey really let loose with his vocals, it really underlined why, even at the age of 85, he's a true all-timer. Uneven, but I'm 100% glad I experienced it.