Chrissie Hynde - Royal Festival Hall, London 14/06/14

16 June 2014, 15:30 | Written by Ed Nash

(Live)

(Chrissie Hynde)

The Royal Festival Hall is a supremely appropriate setting for Chrissie Hynde’s first concert in London for five years, opulent and fit for a queen. Tonight is primarily about her debut solo album Stockholm, but also celebrates her love of guitar music, back catalogue, heroes and the power of songs. With three Swedish flags providing the backdrop, she comes on to what sounds like the country’s national anthem, reminding us we’re in the presence of rock royalty. In her current uniform of choice, tie, t-shirt and waistcoat, she’s still effortlessly cool - and of course the band look like extras from The Sopranos.

The opener, “Tourniquet (Cynthia Anne)” sounds like Scott Walker singing a Spaghetti Western soundtrack. You’re immediately hit by the voice, which is insouciant, withering and soothing - it doesn’t seem to have aged a day since she first appeared with “Stop Your Sobbing”. She moves into more familiar musical terrain with “Sweet Nuthin’”, which sounds like a breezy Tom Petty number with a ferocious sting in its tail, the line “Don’t you be such a baby/Man up to me”, tells you that this is not a woman to be messed with.

By the fourth song she finally draws breath, “You Or No One” is sugar-sweet, sounding like The Ronettes “Be My Baby”, with the words “You” “Love” “Forever” “So Long” and “No One” appearing in strip-lighting to tell the song’s story. But she’s still in love with guitars, and the ragged rock of “Down The Wrong Way” sees Neil Young’s contribution to Stockholm perfectly replicated by her guitarist.

Then it’s the covers section. “Walk Like A Panther”, from Loose Screw, penned by Jarvis Cocker, is a wonderfully muscular strut, she tears into Neil Young’s “The Loner” before a very lovely take on Morrissey’s “Everyday Is Like Sunday” after describing him as “one of my favourite songwriters of all time”. It almost sounds like a personal thank you – she emerged as one of the few people Morrissey seemed to have any respect for in his curmudgeonly Autobiography.

The rather tongue in cheek quip “Now I’m going to play a few songs to remind you of the band I was in back in 1910” prefaces The Pretenders section, and “Talk Of The Town” sounds as fresh, vibrant and sassy as ever. “Don’t Get Me Wrong” prompts the rather polite crowd to suddenly forget their inhibitions, stand up and start dancing. It’s a wonderfully communal moment. She closes with the chugging Iggy and The Stooges-esque “Tattooed Love Boys” from the first Pretenders album; just to remind everyone how long she’s been making tremendous guitar music.

The encore mixes her past and present. “Hymn To Her”, featuring just voice and keyboards is beguiling and sensual. For her recent single “Dark Sunglasses” she’s joined by support act Zacharias Blad who struts around the stage but provides an unwanted distraction from the main event and sadly fluffs his ‘throw the mic in the air’ routine by dropping it with an almighty clunk. But not to worry, the real star of the show has delivered a masterclass in singing, storytelling and songwriting.

Tonight was neither an exercise in nostalgia or self-indulgence; the narrative was Chrissie Hynde’s enduring love affair with music, be that with her own past, present or her heroes’. This was a wonderful evening and a stunning tour de force in the company of a living legend.