THE beer was free-flowing and the catchy country anthems were non-stop as Luke Combs made London's O2 Arena his personal honky-tonk bar for the night.

The final date of the US superstar's European tour was a triumph from start to finish with 20,000 fans - many of who turned out in cowboy hats, boots and plaid shirts - singing their voices hoarse.

Cap wearing, jean-slinging bearded singer-songwriter Luke, who has collaborated with Ed Sheeran, belted out his huge crossover hits and honest tales of blue collar life over an enthralling 20 song set.

Dressed head to toe in black, the party mood was anything but funeral.

Combs prowled the stage with intent, often holding a cup full of beer, ensuring fans on both wings got a good look at their hero.

Modern country anthems Hurricane, Beautiful Crazy and The Kind of Love We Make saw Combs flex is powerful vocal register as sweat poured down his face.

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He transformed the venue into what felt like the world's largest karaoke club when he dropped his cover of Tracy Chapman's classic 90s hit Fast Car - one of his all time favourite tracks.

And during rousing 1, 2 Many, he performed his favourite 'shotgun' party trick that saw him drain a can of beer in messy, but effective fashion.

There was plenty of emotional heft to the show too.

In one heartfelt moment Luke spoke of missing his family - a wife and two young sons - back home before stressing it was an honour to share the room with a legion of fans who had parted with their hard earned money to see him.

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His efforts were duly appreciated, with some fans in tears and others exclaiming it was the 'best gig we've ever been to'.

Combs' promised to return to the UK soon and, when he does, it's hard to imagine how he'll top this.

49 Winchester

Chief support on the night came from probably the best "hillbilly" band in the world right now, the rollicking 49 Winchester.

Taking to the stage in a Stetson, shades, jazzy shirt and with a cream and gold Fender slung over his shoulder, frontman Isaac Gibson was part rock 'n' roll preacher, part sheriff, as he tore through a stunning set list.

There were shades of pre-plane tragedy era Lynyrd Skynyrd as they performed All I Need, a tribute to a love of the good old fashioned rock 'n' roll lifestyle.

The band, who are childhood friends from a small Virginian town, were ridiculously tight and true masters of their craft.

That rhythmic connection was apparent on the aptly titled Chemistry as well as set closer Annabel from latest album Fortune Favors The Bold.

Isaac's proud partner and his father, who drives them around in the States and sells merchandise at shows, watched stage side and the frontman regularly flashed a beaming smile their way, clearly loving every moment of performing.

Just an hour before the band took to the stage, I caught up with Isaac and found him to be incredibly humble and at peace with with the band's continued trajectory upwards; last year Rolling Stone branded them the 'buzziest band of 2022'.

Sitting in a Silverstein top and with a ginger beard that would make ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons proud, Isaac described how the band had changed in its decade-long existence.

"We've just got bigger, bolder, louder and meaner," he said. "It's something that happened naturally. It's not something we particularly set out to do. I write country songs. I'm a country dude from the middle of nowhere in western Virignia. I've always identified as a country band even if it's not top 40 country, it's not that sound, and it's not traditional country, even if there are elements of both of those things within it.

"We've always been a band that's hard to kind of define; is it Americana? Is it roots? Is it rock? Is it country? We love all kinds of music and I think that shows in the music that we make.

"We don't run away from any influences. We're able to be completely free with what we create. We make the music that resonates with us and makes us feel great when we're doing it together on stage."

In an amusing turn of events, the band discovered Luke was a big fan when they spotted that he'd placed an order for a T-shirt from their website.

He then wore the shirt for a big magazine interview; a public declaration of his love of the band.

It wasn't long after that they received a call to join Luke on the road, something they jumped at.

Explaining how the Combs tour has benefited them, he said: "It's massive, particularly here in Europe where we've been doing the tour. We have a headline show on Sunday at Lafayette and it sold out like that [clicks fingers].

"Being able to put yourself in front of this many eyes and places you've never been before you just get an opportunity every night to make potentially thousands and thousands of new fans so it's definitely increased our profile huge stateside but even more in Europe. People get to see the show, be there in real time and experience it. That's really the best way to discover a band anyway."

As a result, 49 Winchester have now reached heights they didn't think possible from their humble small town roots.

"It's pretty mind-blowing, honestly," said Isaac. "We would never have saw ourselves doing this 10 years ago when we started the band.

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"Flash forward a decade and we're playing for 20,000 people in the 02, it's the honour of a lifetime to be on a tour like this and to be playing places that are of this scale and notoriety. For a bunch of hillbilly kids to be doing that is incredible."

On last night's evidence, it won't be long before the band headline the venue in their own right.

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