ALAN Barnes is a multiple poll winner and one of the greatest saxophonists and clarinet players that the UK has produced.

He has received the rare honour, shared by only a few British players, of being signed up to an American record label, in his case Concord Records.

Wider audiences will have heard him, unwittingly, providing the music for several TV commercials - memorably the big baritone saxophone sound on the Boddingtons ads of a couple of years ago.

Thanks are due to Martin Boyd and his Kid Boyd Band for bringing Alan Barnes to our local audiences as their special guest. After triumphant sessions in Hull on Wednesday and York last night, tonight (21st) the venue will be Ripon Grammar School and the short tour concludes tomorrow (22nd) night at Jazz At The Crown, Boston Spa.

If you were not able to get tickets to any of this week's special Alan Barnes events, do not despair. Just as special will be next Saturday at the Shire Hall, Howden, when Barnes appears with American saxophonist Ricky Woodard, details from 01430 431535.

The good burghers of Wakefield Jazz are also adept at finding special guests for their Friday sessions and tonight will be well up to scratch. London-based vocalist Lee Gibson is a visiting lecturer at the Leeds College of Music and no doubt many of her students will be packing in to hear her. Lee's accompanist, British pianist Laurie Holloway, has become an international jazz celebrity and he brings along Bobby Worth (drums), Paul Morgan (bass) and from the BBC Big Band, Martin Williams (tenor saxophone). Details from 01924 782339.

Tuesday night is Scarborough Jazz night and next week's guest at Scholars Bar is Leeds-based saxophonist Joel Purnell. Details from 01723 379818.

"His improvisations seemed to unfold with the ever-changing fascination of a set of Bach variations." So said the Los Angeles Times of next Wednesday's guest at Hulljazz at the Goodfellowship Inn. Sid Jacobs is an American guitarist, teacher and author of books on guitar playing and he appears in Hull with Trefor Owen (guitar) and Bill Coleman (double bass). You can sample Sid's music and his impressive CV at www.sidjacobs.com then call Ken Ford at Hulljazz on 01482 492868.

Often featured in an orchestral or big band setting, the vibraphone surfaces rarely as a solo instrument. Vibist Roger Beaujolais usually partners saxophonist Ray Gelato in the Chevalier Brothers and fronts his own salsa group, the Beaujolais Band. His latest CD, I'll See You Tonight, comes under the name the Roger Beaujolais Quintet. It is a straight-ahead, mainstream/modern outing reminiscent of the Blue Note and Riverside Records sounds of the 1970s, even down to the studio reverb associated with the classic albums of that period (Beaujolais is the producer).

The title track composed by Beaujolais is satisfyingly Horace Silver-ish and two other originals, In The Habit and Oregano, share the pleasing angularity of Joe Henderson's Black Narcissus. It is refreshing to hear Jobim's Dindi as a relaxed 4/4 ballad, rather than as the original bossa nova rhythm. Roger is generous in sharing solo space with the band, particularly with bass player Orlando leFleming, who also has a significant presence in the ensemble mix. Robin Aspland (piano) and Winston Clifford complete a classy rhythm section worthy of Blue Note and the tenor saxophone of Mark Lockheart shares front line duties.

Medium and slow tempos are notoriously difficult to maintain, but Karl Perkins' Grooveyard demonstrates that Brits can achieve the discipline of a slow groove without the tempo wavering. I'll See You Tonight, by the Roger Beaujolais Quintet, is on Stay Tuned Records, distributed in the UK by Proper.

Updated: 09:35 Friday, March 21, 2003