• JTQ Empire Belfast tomorrow night

The veteran Hammond star pride of the Medway James Taylor's Man in the Hotseat proved the latest career peak for the JTQ with ten very succinct and persuasive tracks each less than four minutes long that luxuriated in a coherent spy noir type film feel - think John Barry on The Ipcress File as one jumping off point, and you are immediately in the world of this very fine record. Lushly orchestrated with strings, recorded at Abbey Road, and peppered through with the enduringly compelling Taylor Hammond B3 soul jazz touches. Andrew McKinney was on bass guitar, Mark Cox, guitar, Pat Illingworth, drums. For breakaway Hammond (but the album isn't simply about that) go for 'The Gravedigger' and disinter Dave Bishop's storming baritone sax part into the bargain. 'Don't Mess With the Champ' is the best arranged track and features flautist Gareth Lockrane and certainly romps like a mutha. UK jazz trombone legend Mark Nightingale is among the soloists on the title track. The album also includes a new version of 1990s favourite 'The Money Spyder.' The Empire is one of Belfast's best venues for craic, live music and comedy located on Botanic Avenue where singer-guitarist Ken Haddock, Belfast's biggest and best kept ''next overnight sensation,'' has been in residence for oh decades.

• Marcina Arnold The Verdict Brighton tomorrow night

A fairly rare sighting of the singer from the revered 1990s highly acclaimed MBASE-influenced pioneers, Quite Sane.

• Tom Ollendorff Hawk's Well theatre Sligo Sunday 14th

Open House, from which 'Passing Ships' is drawn London guitarist Ollendorff's latest, is superb - more on the release here. Part of an Irish tour.

• Gabriel Latchin trio Blue Lamp Aberdeen Thursday 18th

Appearing in Aberdeen with the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra double bassist Calum Gourlay and Scott Hamilton drummer Steve Brown pianist Gabriel Latchin's Viewpoint released last month was a gently ruminative album, a period piece in some ways even though the tunes are originals - the stylistic area is the classic 1950s and 60s heyday for modern jazz Latchin joined by the Wyntonian drummer Joe Farnsworth quietly martial before the time changes on a sixpence to swing. Around a while, earlier work of Latchin's was Introducing Gabriel Latchin Trio which came out firstly in 2017, The Moon and I followed two years later and then a Christmas album appeared in 2020. Erstwhile Stacey Kent drummer Josh Morrison was at the kit on all of these recordings.

• Fred Wesley and the New JBs, Eliades Ochoa, Mica Miller, James Pearson, Stan Sulzmann and Nikki Iles, the Nathaniel Facey trio, Paul Clarvis, Cathy Jordan and Liam Noble - Freight Train, Robert Mitchell and more. Manchester Jazz Festival, various venues Manchester. Runs until 28 May

Friday sees the opening of the 2023 edition of the north-west of England's biggest annual city jazz gathering in Manchester. Of the array of new generation talent also on the bill Ferg's Imaginary Big Band is a priority go-hear.

GIG OF THE WEEK

• Sultan Stevenson trio + Josh Short Vortex, London, Friday 19th

Faithful One this year marked the successful and stimulating debut of pianist Sultan Stevenson with a piano trio at its core the album is enhanced by trumpet and saxophone guests (in the latter case, the great Denys Baptiste). The main influence and it is easy to spot is McCoy Tyner but Stevenson does something to move what he knows into something that he owns and frames it in his own cosmos, dominated by the church and by his rapport with his trio out there gigging in London jazz clubs and beyond. McCoy's sound was at the heart of what John Coltrane did with his classic quartet. Stevenson as his own best editor knows how to get his message across and hits bull's eye with this release which came out in March. Josh Short who is on Faithful One guests with the Stevenson trio - the happening bassist is Jacob Gryn and the drummer, a fine technical player, Joel Waters - on this return to Dalston. Sultan Stevenson, top. Photo: press