Kris Kristofferson @ Royal Concert Hall

Seventy years old and one of the few outlaw country stars still standing, Kris Kristofferson's warm, husky voice, combined with the fact that he's one of the finest songwriters on the planet, makes for an almost unbeatable set. It would be fair to say that he's not the world's greatest stage performer, but his status as a living legend allows him quite a bit of leeway and means he can end songs prematurely and fluff all the lines he wants because he's Kris Kristofferson. He's always been a protest singer, but seems tonight to focus less on the politics of what's wrong with the world, and more on the humanity, of which his work contains plenty - sitting easily alongside the crowd pleasers and some of the greatest country standards of the last forty years, like Me and Bobby McGee and For the Good Times. Come back soon now, y'hear? [Paul Greenwood]