Winning formula is simple

It may have been 30 years since they first got together, but Simple Minds are still very much Alive and Kicking.

The Scottish rockers brought their 30th anniversary tour to the West Midlands last night and whipped the crowd into a frenzy from start to finish.

It was a trip down memory lane for all things 80s and all things north of the border as fellow Glaswegians, Deacon Blue, provided a fantastic warm-up to the main event, delivering such classics as Real Gone Kid and Dignity.

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When it was time for Jim Kerr and Co to take centre stage, the enthusiastic audience did not need telling to get out of their seats.

The band opened with Waterfront and then took the crowd on a musical journey spanning the past three decades.

They played all the tracks from their early 80s album New Gold Dream as well as uptempo classics Up on the Catwalk, Don't You (Forget About Me) and All The Things She Said.

Kerr, who is approaching his 50th birthday, gave a sterling performance as he bounced across the stage like a 20-something. And when he stood still, for probably the first time all night, it was to deliver an amazing heartfelt vocal performance of Belfast Child.

They closed the show with a track which can be interpreted as a defiant statement from a band that has been producing hits for 30 years and still going strong – Alive and Kicking.