George's free concert for nurses

Last night he put his promise into action with a superb and affectionate performance that left the crowd in a frenzy.

Only a handful of the nurses were in uniform, about a quarter were men, and they spanned a wide range of ages - reflecting Michael's ability to retain fans throughout his 25-year career and pick up new ones along the way.

From their knowledge of the lyrics and general exuberance, it was clear that the nurses had in common a thorough appreciation of Michael's work and a fervent desire to party.

Opening with his disco house track, Flawless (Go To The City), Michael seemed like an entirely different entity to the dishevelled creature recently seen slumped over the wheel of his car.

With an excellent band on scaffolding behind him, he had full run of a large, shiny stage, and filled it masterfully. His stagecraft was as slick as his tailored velvet suit, but his most stunning attribute was, as always, his voice. In the surprisingly fresh-sounding disco-funk of Everything She Wants the unblemished nature of his vocals was fully revealed.

The notes and inflection almost completely faithful to the recorded version of the 1984 Wham! hit and the youthful, soulful purity of his voice was completely intact.

The only disappointment was his inability to hit the song's implausibly high falsetto notes, a shortcoming he accounted for by explaining that he was suffering from a cold. ("Hearing people moaning about being ill must be a busman's holiday for you," he said, as someone thoughtfully threw a packet of tissues on stage.)

Interspersing a tour through his impressive back catalogue with tributes to the "heroes" of the NHS, his warm words were met with deafening approval. But it was the old favourites that truly brought the house down. He delivered a glorious three-song encore made up of the neck-tingling Careless Whisper, Last Christmas and, finally, Freedom.

There was nothing edgy or ironic about the performance, but that was no bad thing. George Michael, and those who attended his show, embodied the artless cheerfulness of a more gentle-innocent era in pop music. For just one night, it felt as though Club Tropicana - where, let us not forget, "membership's a smiling face" - had been transported from Ibiza 1983 to Camden 2006.

George Michael Tribute
Roundhouse
Chalk Farm Road, Camden Town, NW1 8EH