HE used to be Rod The Mod.
But at 65, the days of prancing and preening in little more than leopard-skin leggings are behind him.
So too, thankfully, for the fans who have matured with him.
Sheffield Arena was packed with middle-aged members of the Stewart clan for whom he is Rod The God.
They sang along as their hero performed songs that are landmarks of their lives; Downtown Train, Hot Legs, Do Ya Think I’m Sexy and This Old Heart Of Mine. Rhythm Of My Heart became a mammoth clapalong.
At times I wished they would stop and let that great voice sandpaper the Arena rafters, particularly during renditions of Van Morrison’s Have I Told You Lately and Handbags and Gladrags.
But his heartfelt ballads, First Cut Is The Deepest and his old dad’s favourite, I Was Only Joking, set to images from the family photo album, gave that gorgeously rasped voice its glory time.
He’s still got it.
The sound, the cockatiel hairdo, the looks (with the physique of a man in his 30s, to me he’s Rod The Bod), the energy to boot countless signed footballs to the back of the auditorium – and that ability to connect.
And though he wears his vibrant shot-silk jackets very well and has probably the best-looking female backing band in the business, having watching him belt through Maggie May I’d love to see him rocking it up in tees and denims with the Faces.
To those who love him, Rod is still a young man and all he has to do is smile
Reproduced with thanks to The Star, Sheffield.