I MIGHT be an adopted Boltonian these days, but I’m a Cheshire girl first and foremost.

So give me the chance to review a gig in the leafy surrounds of Delamere Forest – just ten minutes from my parents’ doorstep – and I’m all ears.

Tell me that the performer in question is Tom Odell, and I’ll snap your hand off.

The Chichester-born 24-year-old has been dubbed ‘the male Adele’ because he sings about love, heartbreak and everything in between in crystalline tones.

Indeed, in 2013 Odell was bestowed with the same accolade Adele received in 2008 – the BRITs Critics’ Choice Award.

But back to Forest Live – the sun was shining, spectacular warm-up act Rae Morris was beguiling the crowd with her husky tones and I was sat on a picnic rug with a G&T – life was good.

Then Odell turned up, and everything got better. He kicked things off with upbeat track Friday Night before launching into the languid I Know.

Next came my personal favourite Can’t Pretend – the song which introduced me to Odell, and which had me hooked from the start.

It features the wild, wailing crescendos which characterise Odell’s atmospheric sound, with layers of pounding piano, strings and his faultless voice cutting through it all.

One of my all time favourite songs is The Smiths’ Death of a Disco Dancer and for me there is something of the jarring yet beautiful cacophony of that track’s crescendo echoed in Odell’s music.

There’s also more than a hint of Jeff Buckley in his raw, soulful vocals while his on-stage energy brings to mind a young David Bowie, all skinny legs askew in drainpipe trousers and hair-flicking.

Moving onto crowd pleasers Grow Old With Me, Hold Me and Constellations Odell had the mass of teeny-boppers at the front of the stage bouncing – and the families and couples picnicking on the hill swaying and waving their drinks appreciatively.

Soon after came Real Love, the gorgeously understated cover of the John Lennon classic which shot Odell to (perhaps dubious) mainstream recognition when it featured as the much-hyped soundtrack to the 2014 John Lewis Christmas ad.

As he ended the performance with biggest hit Another Love and album track Cruel, there wasn’t a smile missing from the forest.

For more information about Forest Live gigs: go to forestry.gov.uk/music