It must be nearly Christmas, the trees are decorated, the lights are sparkling and Jools Holland is on tour and stopping off at the BIC tonight.

Backed by a core band of some of the best musicians around and featuring Ruby Turner and Louise Marshall on vocals you know you are in for a great night of Jazz, Soul, Boogie Woogie and Gospel at its best. Throw Marc Almond and Rumer into the mix and it really does feel as though Christmas has come a couple of weeks early this year.

Jools bounded onto the stage full of energy and immediately set the tone for the evening with a fast paced number that filled the venue with the sound of Boogie Woogie piano. The large backdrop showed close-ups of the piano keys and Jools’ hands and it was fascinating to watch the speed that the man plays at. After such a frantic start the pace of the evening ebbed and flowed perfectly alternating between any number of different genres of music.

One of the features of a Jools Holland tour is the quality of the guests that are added to the shows and tonight was no exception. Marc Almond was greeted warmly and treated the crowd to versions of Say Hello, Wave Goodbye and Tainted Love and from his Soft Cell days getting the crown on their feet where they stayed for the rest of the night. Rumer has a voice like velvet and it was a real pleasure to listen to her portion of the evening.

You can’t leave a Jools Holland gig without feeling uplifted by the music and the infectious attitude of someone who is a master of his craft. I am sure he will be back next year and I am also sure that many of the crowd from tonight’s gig will be right here with him.

Allan Jones