Date: 19 October 1982
Originally published in: Birmingham Evening Mail (UK)
Written by: Jackie Bailey
Kim Wilde became a star long before she ventured out on the road, so there was a great deal of curiosity about how she would fare on this debut tour. I suppose some of us were bound to expect too much.
We were spoiled by Kate Bush, who followed the same procedure but produced such a stunning first show that few people could expect to reach the same standard. Kim didn’t. There was nothing really wrong with her set, apart from the fact that she thought she was in Manchester until someone off-stage enlightened her just before the encore.
Attack
She has a lot going for her, including pin-up looks, a true and strong voice and a clutch of songs that range from acceptable to excellent. But she doesn’t yet seem to have the confidence to go all-out and give some of the songs the attack they need. A good backing band and blinding lights had to try to fill the gap.
The nice surprise was the odd sortie into doo-wap just because Kim seemed to enjoy it so much and does it very well. The rest was entertaining but derivative pop rock.
In a few years Kim might be brilliant. At the moment you can’t call her more than efficient – and promising.
