MONTHLY jazz sessions held at a unique Stourbridge venue are entering a “new and exciting era”, with the next event taking place this Friday (May 12).

Stourbridge vocalist Devon Harrison took up the reins on the Bonded Warehouse’s hot jazz nights from original organiser and pianist Simon Deeley last summer, who had run the sessions over 12 years.

Devon said he was hesitant when he was first asked to take on the club, however having previously performed at the venue and been a regular audience member, the thought of not having the musical evenings persuaded him to give it a go.

He said: “It was a real honour to be asked and a real show of faith, because the scene here is well established and Simon had done a great job over the years in building up the reputation of the club, as being great venue for live jazz performed by fantastic musicians.

“We'll be trying to keep things fresh with the acts we book to encourage a wider audience to come along and enjoy what's on offer. And it's gratifying to see that there is increasing interest in what's happening there.”

This coming Friday sees the return to the Bonded Warehouse of the hugely entertaining jazz violinist “Billy Thompson and his Gipsy Style Quintet” who will be performing a mixture of great songs based around the music of Stephane Grappelli and Django Rheinhardt, as well as original arrangements of standards and new compositions.

Devon added: “It's a great venue, with fine acoustics, easy to get to, lots of free parking, and a five minute walk from the town centre, what's not to like.

“We have a good audience base, which is always appreciative of the musicians, and hopefully we're giving the club fresh impetus.

“We'll always try and offer something different and engaging for the current and new audiences who we hope will come and check us out and make it the hottest tickets around for jazz.”

Tickets for the evening, which starts at 7.30pm, cost £8 and £4, and while light refreshments will be on sale during the interval, people are welcome to bring their own beer or wine.

For more information, or to book tickets, visit www.jabw.org.uk, or search ‘Jazz at The Bonded Warehouse’ on Facebook.