The crowd at Marlay Park on Saturday could have been forgiven for thinking they were at the wrong show when Bruce Springsteen Paolo Nutini walked out on stage shortly after 9pm dressed in blue jeans and a tucked in white t-shirt. All that was missing was the star-spangled banner bandana. He really should have made the extra effort, it was the Fourth of July afterall.

This day last year saw a rather drab performance from Kings Of Leon in the lashings of rain which ultimately did ‘dampen the spirits of revellers’ to the dismay of music review readers around the world. Fast forward 365 days and fellow Americans Alabama Shakes are playing to a sun-soaked crowd and the contrast couldn’t be any more stark. While not quite as energetic a performance as some may have expected(perhaps the roof over The Olympia in November will help), Alabama Shakes were the ideal accompaniment for those sat on their raincoats around the venue. Dunes, Hold On  and Don’t Wanna Fight were the highlights of a set driven by Brittany Howard’s powerful vocal range.

A collection of chair are set up to the side of the stage and one by one, Imelda May’s family take their seats to raucous applause from the crowd. Another loud cheer goes up as what many believe to be another member of May’s family approaches the microphone. The man, in fact, was BP Fallon and he introduced Miss May in typical BP Fallon fashion. May powers her way through a set containing catchy classics such as It’s Good To Be Alive, Johnny’s Got A Boom Boom and Hellfire Club. It was a show that certainly energised the masses for a while but began to drag towards the end as Imelda may have outstayed her welcome.

It’s been quite an eighteen months for Irish fans of Paolo Nutini. An album launching show at the Olympia Theatre was quickly followed by an appearance at Electric Picnic as well as another headliner at 3Arena. Some dissenters felt the Marlay Park show was overkill but the sold out venue proved them all wrong. All Nutini had to do now was put on a show worthy of the setting. Did  he? Occasionally is the answer.

Just as it did in March of last year, Scream (Funk My Life Up) kicks things off in lively fashion and is quickly followed by fellow ‘Caustic Love’ track Let Me Down Easy. A reworked and almost unrecognisable Jenny Don’t Be Hasty(including a brief few lines from New Shoes) makes full use of Nutini’s band, of which the brass section is particularly impressive.

While there’s plenty of swagger in the Scotsman’s step, it does appear as if he’s merely going through the paces. Good song after good song pass by: Better Man; One Day and Cherry Blossom, are all good songs in their own right but something is missing. There were some complaints about the sound in the immediate aftermath of the show, which those up the front were unaware of, but perhaps the poor sound quality led to a lack of atmosphere for those not lucky enough to be in the pit.

Paolo once again re-energises an old classic in Pencil Full Of Lead, giving it an almost Common People vs Dancing In The Dark feel which is in keeping with Nutini’s increasing desire to imitate the Boss in everything he does. But a Bruce Springsteen show this is not. Imelda May graces the stage once again for a cover of Stand By Me in honour of the late Ben E. King before the set is closed out with a rousing rendition of Candy followed by a solo acoustic Last Request which has all 30,000 packed into Marlay Park in fine voice.

And that was that. Paolo Nutini had played an 18-song set featuring no shocks or surprises. It was just a solid, energetic performance that sent the masses home happy. We won’t be writing home to our mothers about it any time soon. Possibly because most of our mothers were there.