THE time it takes to read this sentence is the time it took Jools Holland to get his Echo Arena audience warmed up and clapping along to his rhythm.

Moments after he sat down on his multi-coloured stool and started tickling the piano's black and white keys, before the rest of his Rhythm and Blues Orchestra had even picked up their instruments, fans were on their feet.

Although Holland took centre stage, a stream of solos poured forth from a 15- strong pool of saxophones, trombones, trumpets, percussion, guitar, bass, drums and an organ.

Laughing, joking, and dancing, the band obviously had fun throughout with male trumpet players even breaking into the cancan at one point.

Dressed in brown velvet and red lipstick, singer Rosie May gave a lively performance of Muddy Waters' classic I Got My Mojo Working, while Lancashire lass Louise Marshall blew the audience away with a trio of tunes including Waterloo Bridge, Tennessee Waltz and I Went By.

Introduced by Holland as the "Boogie Woogie queen", Gospel star Ruby Turner cranked the crowd up a gear so people weren't just swaying to the music in their seats, they were dancing along the aisles with heads bobbing, arms waving and hips bumping.

One of the evening's highlights was guest singer Alison Moyet's deep-toned, sultry set. A slimmed-down Moyet dressed in black skinny jeans and towering heels, changed the atmosphere into that of a small-town Blues bar as she sexily swung around the microphone stand in the style of an old Hollywood actress.

The former Yazoo singer pleased the crowd with numbers including Love Letters Straight From Your Heart, The Man That Got Away, Boom Boom and, of course, Only You.

It would have been a treat to see an entire concert of Moyet, or any of the other soloists, but to see them all together was a musical feast.

Former Squeeze drummer Gilson Lavis performed an octopus-like drum solo. In Holland's words, it was "the greatest drum solo in this room tonight or any night of our lives".

Other highlights included reggae legend Rico Rodriguez, Liverpool guitarist Mark Flanagan, who Holland says trained in the city's Atlantic Pub, and, of course, Holland himself.

Standing up playing piano with his right hand, singing into the mic while his toes tapped and left hand waved in the air conducting the band, Holland was truly the ultimate maestro of ceremonies.