I Wish I Knew How To Quit You

Wembley marked the start of a victory run for a figure who, like Hockney, has aimed to combine accessibility with artistic vision. With Styles the purpose of that vision is not always clear: many of the lyrics on his new album Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally are not so much elliptical poetry with hidden meanings, more complete nonsense.

Still, rare is the former boy band member who takes his audience towards strange places while holding on to mass appeal. Styles has somehow managed to do it while appearing to take it all in his stride.

As the screams proved — and all it took was a little wiggle of the bum to send the predominantly female twenty-something audience into the throes of ecstasy — Styles remains a heart-throb first of all. That’s what the vast circuit of a runway was for: to give the fans a chance of proximity with their idol.

And he knew how to fill the space. Styles has been compared to David Bowie, but the figure he actually resembles is Elvis Presley; another star who relied chiefly on the power of his charisma. No wonder he came on stage to The King’s version of Bridge Over Troubled Water.

It makes sense because really, for all the cool references he has slipped into his sound and vision, like naming an album Harry’s House in honour of the cult Japanese musician Haruomi Hosono or including a touch of Underworld’s rave anthem Born Slippy into Taste Back, Styles is held up by big pop songs.

Watermelon Sugar was a major singalong; the emotional swell of Fine Line was given a boost from a chamber orchestra, Harry on the guitar, and tears from overwhelmed concertgoers. Yes, there was a bit of trippy weirdness in Italian Girls, but that was merely window dressing for the main attraction: the singer and his songs. And Styles wasn’t erasing his past. He recalled coming to Wembley Arena next door 16 years ago for his X Factor audition before going with his sister to see Big Ben and the Natural History Museum.

It was a major event too: dance routines in the mid section, laser beams illuminating the night sky, congas in the crowd giving the feel of one big party. Ultimately Styles has succeeded in becoming one of the biggest stars in the world by taking an unforced approach and being open to influence, and although 12 nights at Wembley and 30 at Madison Square Garden might be over-egging the pudding, by an encore of As It Was Styles had pulled a stadium full of people into his benign world.

Hockney, honoured on the screen with a quote of his about how “art is about sharing”, would have understood.