The 63-year-old American on stage tonight was one of the biggest stars in the firmament at the end of the 1980s. Back then, his debut album Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D’Arby went multiple-platinum, he was seen as the new Prince and told the world he was a genius. However, D’Arby’s career plummeted after the critical savaging of his more experimental second album and in 2001 he changed his name to “create a new identity that wasn’t traumatised by the ‘fall from grace’.” He walks on for his first UK tour in almost a quarter of a century to a hero’s welcome. The flowing dreadlocks have gone, but his glistening pate suits him and he retains his impish grin, quipping: “I only went out for some cigarettes, but took 23 years.”
Maitreya’s band the Sugar Plum Pharaohs bring the funk and high-ranged backing vocals. His own voice, very briefly raspy, remains an astonishing instrument, capable of airy sweetness and gut-wrenching raw power. The extended high falsetto note at the end of Delicate receives its own spontaneous ovation. The Academy is busy rather than full, but the singer feels the love. “This is what clubs are for,” he yells.
The set list, split by an interval, spans decades and genres, from psychedelic funk to pretty balladry. Billy Don’t Fall, a Motown-y gem from that ill-fated second album, is sung with sublime emotion. Quality control was always Maitreya’s achilles heel and there are wobbles – a couple of so-so rockers in the second half – but not many.
Meanwhile, Wishing Well and Sign Your Name roll back the years. A beautifully plaintive Let Her Down Easy and soulful Holding on to You suggest that he never stopped writing terrific songs, even if fewer people heard them. “Get up outta your rockin’ chair, grandma!” he yells, by way of the introduction to a stupendously funky Dance Little Sister, which has the whole crowd singing. Surprisingly, he avoids the obvious audience-slayer of If You Let Me Stay, but perhaps Maitreya was never going to make things too easy for himself.
• At 02 Ritz, Manchester, 28 October, then touring
