The blues showcase for this month of world beats was, by any reckoning, a great night, played before a capacity crowd of devotees.

The hosting band Mo' Indigo opened up with Talk To Me, featuring Harry Lang's vocals, before introducing the first of their star US guests.

Charles Walker lost no time in making his presence felt on tunes such as 99,000 Watts Of Soul.

A veteran soul and blues performer who began paying his dues in Fifties New York, he has lost none of the energy that has seen he and Earl dubbed the Real Blues Brothers.

A well-judged set of great variety ran from a performance of his debut recording and Fifties hit Slave To Love through to the country soul groove of I'm Available from his new CD.

Lang's rhythm guitar accompaniment and the band's backing vocals were particularly effective here, as was the audience's on You'll Need To Come Back Honey ('Cause I'll Be Gone).

The second set belonged to Earl Gaines, a week after celebrating his 67th birthday.

He was in fine form, his distinctive voice recalling, at times, John Lee Hooker and Big Joe Turner.

He included At The End Of The Day, a new piece co-written by Lang and US bluesman Sherman Robertson.

As in the first set, the Mo' Indigo team provided great backing, with guitarist Robin Carr and organist Anthony Cooper worthy of particular praise, and the bass and drums of John Bulpitt and Colin Nixon solid throughout.

Gaines' vocal told a succession of familiar bluesy tales including You Gotta Reap Just What You Sew, I Don't Know Why I Feel This Way and I Need Your Good Lovin' (Every Night Of The Week).

Though fully-seated, the full house had been itching to dance and Gaines' encore of When Something's Wrong With My Baby (Something's Wrong With Me) gradually brought the audience up all around the room.

Walker returned to join Gaines on two wild R'n'B classics, Let The Good Times Roll and Hey Hey, The Blues Is Alright - statements these two great talents and their band proved beyond measure.