OTTAWA -- She sure didn't look like a tired 17-year-old who landed in Ottawa in the middle of the night, only to find the airline had lost her bag.

Avril Lavigne had lots of energy by the time she stormed onto the stage after opening act Not By Choice at the Civic Centre last night, greeted by screams from almost 9,000 of her fans.

"What's up?" she screamed in greeting.

It was just hours after a soft-voiced Lavigne said she felt like she'd taken too much cough syrup she was so tired, and was just a little grumpy she didn't have her own toothbrush.

She even made an emergency 4 a.m. phone call to her mom at home in Napanee, asking her to bring a different pair of shoes to wear on stage. That one of the shoes was untied for part of the show didn't stop her from bopping around with her all-male band members and stepping down repeatedly for some face time with young fans.

The audience ate it up as Lavigne sang most of the songs on her debut CD Let Go, roaring the loudest for that chart-topping song of summer Complicated and screaming in delight when the band called for house lights to shine on them. Lavigne belted out her tunes just as well live as she does on her CD and the audience seemed to know and love every one of them, including Mobile, Losing Grip, the ballad I'm With You and My World, about life growing up bored in small town Napanee.

'BE YOURSELF'

They jumped up and down to new single Sk8er Boi and cheered for the rappish Nobody's Fool, which Lavigne yelled out is about "being yourself and not putting up with anyone's sh--."

If there were any complaints it was in the amateurish feeling of a too-short 50-minute show, which was offset by Lavigne's powerhouse vocals and her complete ease at being in the spotlight. And the teen seemed completely unfazed by technical problems which had her handing off a guitar during an encore plagued with feedback and a few off-key notes. Nor did she skip a beat after twice moving to the wings so someone could adjust the mike pack clipped to her falling-down army pants.

"My pants are falling down," she joked to her band members, alluding to a recent memorable performance at the Much Music Video Awards in Toronto. "Didn't that happen last time we were in Toronto?"

"You've all seen Avril's ass, right?" yelled out bandmate Evan Taubenfield.

Security was kept busy pulling woozy fans out of the front row and watching out for Lavigne whenever she ducked down into the pit, later telling disappointed autograph-seekers -- many wearing the tank top and dark tie outfit she's made famous -- she wasn't coming out.

Many of those who knew her in the early days -- that is just three years ago when she was last in Ottawa singing her heart out after winning a contest to perform a duet with Shania Twain -- say she was born to perform.

And she clearly is, without a twinge of stage fright or hesitancy about her.

"Thank you guys for giving my album a chance," shouted Lavigne, before tossing over her mike stand and storming off the stage, just the way she came on.

JAM! Rating: 3.5 out of 5