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Sauntering to the stage in her golden and black tiered gown, Dionne Warwick is as cool and classy as ever. The music industry veteran, prolific interpreter, and legendary vocalist has an understated charisma that has always served her well. Last night marked her tenth appearance at the Royal Albert Hall and the first stop on her UK tour this month.

After an introductory spiel with the audience, wherein she celebrated the Royal Albert Hall’s upcoming 150th anniversary, she proceeded with a whistle-stop tour of her early hits, beginning in the early 1960s. Surprisingly, her (arguably) signature songs – the Burt Bacharach/Hal David penned ‘Walk On By’, ‘Don’t Make Me Over’, and ‘I Say A Little Prayer’ – were not performed in full but rather sampled in a lengthy medley.

The audience gasped as each song was introduced, quietly singing along as encouraged by Ms Warwick. As is the case with concerts for legacy artists, the magic of seeing a legend performing their greatest hits live in the flesh tends to be enough for most audience members. High quality music seems somewhat of an afterthought, or an added bonus. Ms Warwick could have performed a ritual sacrifice live on stage and would have still received a rapturous standing ovation – assuming it was to the tune of ‘Walk On By’ of course.

But, despite being 77 years of age and a chronic smoker for most of her lifetime, the voice is still there. And what a breathtaking voice it is. Like with Mavis Staples, there is naturally less range but still heaps of character. Buoyed by the wonderful acoustics of the Royal Albert Hall, the crackle and husk of Warwick’s voice dazzled.

The orchestra was in magnificent shape too, delivering lavish and rich arrangements with seamless transitions. During ‘I Say A Little Prayer’, Warwick handed over to her son, drummer and vocalist David Elliot, who has inherited gorgeous phrasing from his mother. Afterwards she moved into another medley of her 1970s and ’80s hits, including ‘I’ll Never Fall In Love Again’, ‘Deja Vu’, and ‘Heartbreaker’.

The strongest medley was one of Hal David and Burt Bacharach movie standards, often first recorded by other artists and later covered by Warwick. To audience laughter, she wryly remarked that she should have sang all these songs for their respective films. With deliberately behind the beat phrasing, she lilted on the whispery and sensual ‘The Look of Love’. She navigated the climax of the epic ‘A House Is Not A Home’ with effortless command.

After paying homage to Antônio Carlos Jobim, she delivered the showstopper of the evening – ‘I’ll Never Love This Way Again’. With music by Richard Kerr, lyrics by Will Jennings, and produced by Barry Manilow, ‘I’ll Never Love This Way Again’ won Warwick a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal in 1980. It is MOR pop balladry at its finest. A technically challenging song to sing, her voice soared with stunning resonance. Key change and all! She delivered the song’s climax with her characteristic finish – holding the last note of the song, pulling away from the microphone, and then returning to full volume with a powerful vocal lick.

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