Pete Doherty returned to Newcastle last week, as part of his first solo tour since reforming The Libertines last year. The two support acts, comedian Raymond Mearns and singer Alan Wass, were jeered off stage by an impatient crowd, and gave way to Doherty who eventually arrived on stage at 10pm.
Despite the seemingly long wait, Doherty did not disappoint. Renditions of classic Libertines' songs such as Don't Look Back Into The Sun set the crowd into a period of disorder with many fans being removed from the crowd and a large proportion of the 2000+ fans' underwear being thrown onto the stage.
The stage itself was simple; a table consisting of gin, cigarettes and two candles set the ambience of Pete's performance exquisitely. Two ballerinas accompanied Doherty for the more emotionally intimate songs, perfectly complimenting the acoustic set.
The hour-and-a-half long set proved a hit with the crowd, who were left begging for more after his final piece (a rendition of the Beatles 'Twist and Shout' followed by a beautifully reinterpretation of Fuck Forever) instigated a sense of hysteria amongst his fans.
Although singing along throughout, I can't help but feel that I have outgrown Doherty. In a 2004 interview with Garry Mulholland (of the Guardian), Peter assured fans that he was going to 'knock crack and heroin on the head' and complained of how he was 'fucking bogged down in being Peter Libertine: The Rehab King'. Yet almost 8 years on, Pete was jailed for possession of cocaine only last week - 22 May 2011 - after numerous charges of possession of Class A drugs. Mulholland described Pete as an 'outstanding singer-songwriter and charismatic poet-vagabond', none of which can be disputed, but his hope of Doherty leaving his ironic libertine lifestyle behind him is well and truly non-existant.
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