Gig review: The Charlatans at O2 Academy Leeds

“Leeds, Leeds, Leeds!” exclaims Tim Burgess shortly after emerging on stage to a packed, expectant crowd on Sunday night.

The legendary, and perennially youthful, Charlatans frontman is in fine form as his much-loved band reel off so many of their greatest hits to an adoring fanbase.

Since establishing themselves as one of the finest indie/Britpop bands of the 1990s, Burgess and his pals are still performing with style more than three decades on.

It says much for their enduring appeal.

The Charlatans’ loyal, albeit ageing, followers turned out in force once again to see them play some of their most famous and best-loved tunes, plus a number of more recent tracks.

The Charlatans have notched up 13 Top 40 studio albums – three of them number ones – alongside 22 Top 40 singles, four of them Top 10 hits.

More recently The Charlatans released a career-spanning vinyl box collection A Head Full Of Ideas.

With his casual, dress-down attire, bleach-blond mop of hair and easy-going style – from his dancing, smiling and filming selfie footage of singalongs with the crowd to post on social media – Burgess clearly loves what he does.

The day before, he had sang and played harmonica while bandmate Martin Brunt played a free-to-use piano that is situated on the main concourse of Piccadilly train station in Manchester.

The duo played a version of Impossible, from their 1999 album Us and Us Only as well as 1995’s Just When You’re Thinkin’ Things Over from their self-titled album.

In Leeds, Don’t Wanna See The Sights opens the set before classics such as Just When You're Thinkin’ Things Over and One to Another.

The favourites come thick and fast with Then, North Country Boy, Weirdo and The Only One I know with the iconic crowd-pleaser Sproston Green finishing off a rousing encore.

The Charlatans always go down a storm in Leeds and their latest visit to the city left the crowd, who were in high spirits throughout, longing for more.