Despite an early start and with the audience still trickling in FM, delivered a fine set, honed from 30 years of performing together on what promised to be some of the best of 80’s AOR.

Europe arrived on stage and it felt as if a breeze had blown through the building as a thousand women sighed simultaneously. Once known as much for his golden curls and heartthrob looks as his voice, Joey Tempest had clearly lost none of his Swedish charm. Opening with ‘Riches to Rags’ and ‘Firebox’ from their album ‘Bag of Bones’ they showed they have grown from the radio rock they were famous for to something edgier and richer. Tempest’s voice has matured and has a rougher edge to it, and to my mind it’s better for it. There followed a nice mix of newer material such as ‘Last Look at Eden’ and old favourites ‘Cherokee’ and ‘Carrie’ but in truth it was set closer ‘The Final Countdown’ that finally bought the audience to their feet.

When is a foreigner not a foreigner? When he’s in his home town, and so for one night only Mick Jones returns to his roots in Portsmouth. Unusually he lets the kids come out to play without him for the first 4 songs a quick run of punchy hits ‘Double Vision’, ‘Head Games’ and ‘Cold as Ice’ is followed by a declaration of a search for the most romantic couple during ‘Waiting for a Girl Like You’, which was sweetly awarded to a by then teary-eyed dad and his 7 year old daughter.

Foreigner is often cited as being ‘not really Foreigner’ with Mick Jones being the only original member, but what becomes clear as Mick joins the band on stage for ‘Feels like the First Time’ is that Mick Jones IS Foreigner. Whilst the rest of the band had thus far given a tight performance his arrival ramps it up a notch.

This was a ‘best of’ set and there are no real omissions ’Dirty White Boy’, ‘Urgent’ were there and, after a drum solo that was probably reminiscent of wartime raids on the city and singer Kelly Hanson’s return to stage wearing a Pompey shirt, they closed a remarkably energetic evening with ‘Jukebox Hero’ and encores ‘I Want to Know what Love Is’ (accompanied by a local school choir) and ‘Hot Blooded’.

And as the music faded away the audience left for home in a happy cloud of nostalgia.