Katie captivates quiet crowd

Katie Melua

LG Arena, Birmingham

By Stuart Clements

Award-winning Katie Melua wowed her spellbound audience at the LG Arena as she performed a stunning array of her hits.

The 24-year-old played to a quiet but appreciative audience last night during a set which showed off her musical talents.

She walked on stage wearing an all-in-one black suit and blouse and started on acoustic guitar playing hits Piece By Piece, One At A Time and Lilac Wine before moving on to the piano.

Katie, originally from Georgia, talked about her childhood and move to Northern Ireland in 1993 following the aftermath of the Georgian Civil War, where her father took up a position at the prestigious Royal Victoria Hospital as a heart specialist.

Her career took off after she attended the Brit School for The Performing Arts in London and has won numerous awards since.

She sang Yellow Leaves in her native tongue, a performance which was simply amazing.

Katie then went on to sing Mary Pickford, Spellbound, Scary Films and Ghost Town. The somewhat sedate audience came to life during the hit Nine Million Bicycles and massive hit Closest Thing To Crazy.

She finished her polished performance on I Cried For You, sending her fans home happy.