We caught just the first set of last night's Ronnie Greer gig. Usually the Lisburn blues guitarist and icon of the Irish scene plays the same venue in the gallery bar - here he was in the main theatre. Turn-out was fairly small - around 80-90 people so there wasn't an awful lot of atmosphere given it seats around 300 people. But it could have been - and often is even more meagre. The theatre only regularly sells out when the household name Country 'n' Irish stars come to town because that's the music that the gig-going public locally likes most.

But anyway the sound quality was good, lighting wasn't amazing - there was a lot of shadow on the players' faces. I would have preferred the set in the gallery bar space although the sound wouldn't have been as good there. Ronnie said he had a chest infection so wouldn't be doing much singing ''which might be a relief to many'' an old gag from his repertoire. The slow drag of Chris Vitarello's 'No Brainer' tagged the blues straight away at the beginning. And yet this was a mixed set that also rowed in jazz and classic singer-songwriter material. John McCullough on a Hammond SKX and electric piano drove the rhythm section with sparkling help from Nick Scott on bass guitar and later at set end went into jaunty boogie-woogie mode on 'Roll 'em Pete' from the late-1930s.

The drummer wasn't Peter McKinney as advertised but instead the buoyant on-the-money sound of cap-wearing Matt Weir rippled outwards. Anthony Toner on guitar came into his own soloing on old Greer band favourite JJ Cale's 'Cajun Moon'. And yet a lot of the main action throughout the set was coming from the keys.

The band were joined by singer and guitarist Ken Haddock, the Belfast legend a fixture in residence at the Botanic Avenue spot the Empire for many years, an acoustic guitar, supposed gift from Welsh ''chanteuse'' Bonnie Tyler (again a ''break up'' golden oldie of a Greer gag), strapped on to Ken.

Mary Lee Reed's 'Good Lover' synonymous with 'Mama' Reed's husband the great bluesman Jimmy Reed sung by Toner and when McCullough went more honky tonk on piano was best, the rendition of Charles Mingus' 'Nostalgia in Times Square' a jazz outlier but OK and better than the last time we heard the band - Ronnie musing to the audience we don't do jazz too much as ''the j word'' puts people off.

Hymns to the Silence legend Nick Scott on bass guitar was energetic throughout the set. And that Van Morrison connection was underlined when Ken Haddock sang 'Tupelo Honey' to begin his portion of the set. Haddock did a tender version of John Martyn's 'May You Never' and for the singalong soared on Tom Waits' 'Jersey Girl'. He went into the ''basement down home blues'' on a Freddie King number, the Billy Myles song that begins Have you ever loved a woman/So much you tremble in pain? and continues All the time you know, She bears another man's name and performed a duo treatment along with McCullough of James Taylor's 'Carolina In My Mind' moving the sound more into even more melodic waters. A band that can play the phonebook - it's baffling once again that Ken Haddock isn't a household name. And call on Greer as ever to keep the heritage of the Chicago blues alive and kicking. Review: Stephen Graham

The Ronnie Greer band - l-r in the group shot: John McCullough, Nick Scott, Matt Weir, Anthony Toner, Ronnie Greer at Ardhowen on 11 February. Ken Haddock, pictured, at his mic