A tour promoter has leaped to Whitney Houston's defence after she was criticized for struggling through a two-hour concert in Australia on Monday.
Fans gave mixed reviews after Houston's lacklustre set at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, during which she was said to have been coughing and taking short breaks to catch her breath.
But organiser Andrew McManus insists the show, the first of Houston's short trek Down Under, was a success.
He says, "I saw the whole show. Was it an A? No, it was probably a B+. It was not a train wreck. She was hitting most of the notes. Yes, her throat was a little croaky.
"Her health is fine but she's also not 22 years of age anymore. She was on stage for two-and-a-half hours dancing, singing, running. Was she a little out of breath on a couple of songs? Yes, she was. But I don't apologise for that, she had a red-hot go."
And McManus admits Houston was "surprised" by her fans' disappointment - because she put her best effort into the gig.
He adds, "There were 9,500 people there (and) 9,000 gave her a standing ovation. There were so many happy faces - that's what she saw from the stage. So she's surprised by the negativity the morning after.
"She went to bed after the show giving a two-and-a-half hour solid performance. She was proud of it. She thought she gave her all and did a strong performance and I agreed with her. This was the first night of a tour after a long flight; she hasn't played for a while."
Houston is next due to appear at the Acer Arena in Sydney on Wednesday.
