John Etheridge is already one of the all-time kings of guitar. With his brilliant backing Pete Whittaker on electric organ and the powerhouse of rhythm that is George Double (now there’s another muso in high demand) the result is so polished you wonder where the drive and drama comes from

The answer according to John is a life in the rock ‘n roll world. His memories of days of life on the road tell it all. Stephane Grapelli? He never realised just where he was, last night’s number was a surprise every time ‘like a goldfish in the bowl’ for him it was always fresh. Years in the Soft Machine – mostly blurred by the usual excess. In between numbers the super-affable maestro reviewed his life on the road, laments for Jeff Beck ‘what a lovely man, died far too young of meningitis’

Yet in this long session there was much more music than chat – and even if John opened the second half by singing ‘She’ll be Coming Round the Mountain when she Comes ‘as he made his way through the audience, it was all top-class stuff. And then swung into Hank Williams’ Cold cold heart’ -“White Man’s Blues’ remarked John. It was hypnotically lovely.” So John Etheridge didn’t.It was one fabulous tune after another.” Sealed with a kiss’ was a gorgeous guitar number, written John told us by the man who wrote “She wore an ‘itsy bitsy teeny weeny yellow polka dot bikini.’ He gave us a couple of lines. “How long before I am ‘cancelled?’ he teased. Then it was a luscious Ray Charles number “You don’t know me’.But we do know John and most of the audience adore him. Accomplished guitarists do homage – splendid player and superb artist James Horton was there – still in awe of John’s style and skill. But it was when they started to swing, the full force of the trio switched into top gear. One Latin number was enough for me to become a for-life fan of George Double for his irresistible interludes of perfect percussion. How we all stayed seated is a mystery. I thought the high point of the evening was not even John’s sublime Skylark by Hoagy Carmichael but ‘I’m coming home baby now’- (you remember?) written for Jeff Beck by Stevie Wonder. The trio exploded into that ultra hype rhythm so like an unleashed express train. In a wonderful way.

Why I hesitated to buy the album I don’t know but glad I did. Nor did I know Blue Spirits haven’t made an album in twenty years together. The reason why? John is clear about it “Like any true analogue” he confesses, he dislikes “the inquisitorial and often claustrophobically self- conscious ambience of the recording studio”. He loves the “properly ephemeral as improvised music surely should be” This is the guitarist who ,halfway through the first set, decided to introduce us to the word ‘persiflage’ ( light sneery banter). Not many musicians go that far!

The C.D is gorgeous. ‘This’, announced a workman who walked in on it playing in my kitchen “it’s soothing hypnotic and exciting all together.”

Right on and forever Blue Spirits. Well done Cambridge Modern Jazz.