A quick straw poll a few weeks ago at Bristol Culture Towers revealed that precisely nobody had ever heard of Caro Emerald.

Pretty incredible for a Dutch singer whose debut album Deleted Scenes From The Cutting Room Floor beat Michael Jackson’s Thriller to become the longest ever number one album in the Netherlands, with a 30-week run in the Dutch charts.

So who is this greatest superstar we’ve never heard of?

An incredibly precise and pitch-perfect evening at the Colston Hall gave a sell-out crowd an consummate display of her talents.

The show was based on songs from both Deleted Scenes and her seond album UK chart-topping album The Shocking Miss Emerald.

Opening number A Night Like This epitomised the singular uniqueness of the sound she and her co-collaborators have created; a sassy, jazzy, up-tempo, swing-style of a slightly seedy Moroccan 40s nightclub punctuated with a clever interweaving of hip-hop.

You could almost smell a waft of hot shisha smoke being blown in your direction by a back-to-front-fez wearing b-boy.

Despite the hip-hop interludes, the night really belonged to swing.

Caro was backed up by an immaculately suited eight-member band, with a razor-sharp brass section and an, oddly-appropriate, record-scratching DJ. The blend worked brilliantly.

The evening saw Caro provide faultless renditions of Liquid Lunch, Back It Up, Dr Wanna Do, and other favourites.

If there is a hint of criticism it’s that the precision of the music stopped the group really feeling the music.

It started out a little stiff but a couple of costume changes by Caro allowed the band the freedom to jam, with a stunning rockabilly guitar solo, which loosened the evening up – and by the end the sell-out crowd was off their seats and dancing.

Which just goes to show what we know.

Review by Anthony Story