The brilliant outnumber the dotty at Live 8

Live 8, by restricting performers to two or three songs apiece, ensured the show would be a sort of live Greatest Hits compilation.

The extraordinary dispatch with which successive acts were shuttled onstage and off speaks volumes for logistical genius.

But dotty diva Mariah Carey's unctuous self-regard; "Bring me water! And a mike-stand! Here's my masseuse! Whaaat? There's no mike-stand?", clashed badly with the agreeable tone sustained by nearly every other performer and her set effectively deflated the mood they had so assiduously built.

Robbie Williams restored excitement with a brief set that confirmed him as one of the bravura performers of his era, part cheeky chappie, part brash rocker, all entertainer.

The Macca/U2 overture of Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was a brilliant gambit which both recalled the original Live Aid concerts, and ensured the show started with a bang.

REM's uplifting spot, blending the anthemic Everybody Hurts with the rousing Man On The Moon demonstrated how brilliantly this one-time indie garage band has redefined the essence of large-scale stadium dynamics.

The Who used video images to pointedly redirect Who Are You and Won't Get Fooled Again at the G8 leaders, McCartney capping proceedings with a chipper, upbeat finale, and Pink Floyd furnishing the day's most hauntingly memorable moments with a typically transcendent set.

But the best performance was Madonna, whose slot featured gospel choir and head-spinning B-Boy dancers, with clear, well-coached vocals and slick band and staging demonstrating how seriously she took the event.

- INDEPENDENT