But this is where they were on Saturday night and as they swaggered on stage exuding confidence from every pore I began to wonder if I had misjudged this ragtag bunch of musicians.

Starting the show off with a bang, the Liverpudlian five-piece launched into their very own self-penned theme tune 'Zuton Fever'.

• Click the green 'play' icon to watch a photo slideshows of both of the Sherwood Pines gig this weekend. Crowded House photos by Anne Shelley, Zutons photos by Angela Ward.

• Review: Crowded House - Sherwood Pines Forest Park.

This was what the crowd had been waiting for. Despite the sometimes quite heavy rain and the seemingly interminable wait between bands, the party atmosphere (probably helped by the generously stocked bar) had reached fever pitch.

Surged

The crowd itself seemed to swell in numbers as more and more people surged forward to get a piece of the action and the band didn't disappoint as they fired out 'Why Won't You Give Me Your Love' from second album, 'Tired Of Hanging Around'.

Lead singer Dave McCabe was clearly enjoying himself as he belted out the tunes, although his almost comically stereotypical Scouse accent meant some of his banter between songs fell flat.

Promoting their new album 'You Can Do Anything', the middle section of their performance settled into the routine of offering the audience tasters of their new material.

They remain tight and punchy throughout with some really strong drumming. But this is clearly a band that feeds of the crowd's energy and as they stepped into the unknown, some of the swashbuckling exuberance shown at the start of the gig began to dissipate.

Criticism

One criticism of the quintet has always been that they are a 'singles band' – with their albums leaving you wanting much more from such a talented bunch.

Judging on some of the new songs on show yesterday, the concern is that tag is not about to go away quickly.

However, it did not take much for them to regain the hearts and minds of the non-hardcore fans as they started working their way up to their grand finale.

Raptures

Clearly buoyed by the new-found recognition caused by the re-working of their top ten hit 'Valerie' by Amy Winehouse and the producer with the Midas touch Mark Ronson, the band sent the crowd into raptures as they launched into their original version.

The former Mercury Prize nominees followed that up with new rocker single 'Always Right Behind You' which also went down a storm.

As the darkness descended, they came back on for a perfectly-pitched encore full of call and response crowd participation and ending with popular hit 'You Will, You Won't', drawing the curtain down on a superb last ten minutes.

Backed by a largely partisan crowd The Zutons outshone support acts Noah and the Whale and the Mystery Jets.

But the hope is that one day they will finally manage to bottle their infectious live performances and tap into their vast unfulfilled potential for an entire album. Then maybe the thought of them stepping out of the small clubs and into the big-time won't seem so out of place.

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