Gig review: Rick Astley at First Direct Arena, Leeds

“I’ll do the singing, Leeds, but you’ll have to do the dancing,” Rick Astley instructs a sold-out crowd spilling out of their seats at the city’s First Direct Arena. He points to the slick stage underfoot and gives a pantomime chuckle. “I’m on a shiny floor in cowboy boots. Nobody in the world is going to insure a 58-year-old man for that!”

Even by the measure of his latter-day resurgence, 2023 was a high point for the former Eighties pop idol. A pair of Glastonbury performances – including a disarmingly fantastic tribute to The Smiths with Blossoms – furthered his place among the cultural zeitgeist; Are We There Yet?, his third comeback-era record, hit number two in the charts; he topped the BBC’s New Year’s Eve concert to an audience of millions. Not since the Rickroll phenomenon has he been as ubiquitous in the British public consciousness.

Despite that, Astley remains genially grounded, this third wave of fame tempered by humility and appreciation. Still luxuriously bequiffed after all these years, he is at pains to praise his band from opener Never Gonna Stop onwards, as they drape a blanket of muscular blue-eyed soul over proceedings.

Yet he cannot hide increased cross-generational appeal; with an audience ranging from Stock Aitken Waterman-era retirees to TikTok-friendly zoomers, the Lancastrian may only play down newfound national treasure status so far.

Songs are parcelled out with relative equitability between prime-era classics and post-revival fare, ensuring you’re never too far away from a top ten single – even if it is not one of Astley’s own.

Together Forever remains as brassily effervescent as it did on release, while the soft rock gospel of Cry for Help still conveys a soaring power.

New stuff, like Forever and More’s Motown-inflected mid-tempo strut, holds up well too alongside Dance’s twirly R&B grooves; interpolations of Harry Styles’ megahit As It Was and Chic’s funk classic Good Times are less successful, but nevertheless canny additions.

At the centre, the man of the moment continuously marvels at the sight before him, filled to the rafters. Fewer people seem to be having more fun at this juncture of their career than Astley; when he steps behind the drums for a raucous cover of AC/DC’s Highway to Hell, the joy that emanates is palpably tangible.

“I’m just milking it now!” he hollers during the climactic, all-encompassing Never Gonna Give You Up. Who could blame him?