Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra sparkle on a warm summer's evening

On a bend on the river Thames, Hampton Court Palace is a stunning venue and has stood the test of time well, with extravagant gardens, rumours of haunted buildings, and a world-famous maze which bring back fond memories from my childhood. Transport yourself back 400 years or so and Kings and Queens would have been entertained in this 16th century palace, with Shakespeare once putting on a show for King James I.

This is the 18th year of the Hampton Court Palace Festival, and tonight was the 4th of the 10 night series of events including shows by Van Morrison, Michael Bolton and Katherine Jenkins.

It's rare to get the chance to see a performance in such a majestic venue, and many of the mostly middle-aged guests took advantage of a sudden favourable change in the weather to enjoy a picnic in the gardens prior to the start of the performance.

Jools Holland and the Rhythm & Blues Orchestra, part way through a tour of the UK, regularly perform at summer festivals like this one, playing funky and soulful music perfectly suited to a warm summer's evening.

A full capacity crowd of 2700, surrounded by high walls and turrets in the Base Court, were treated to an intimate and varied performance ranging from slow chilled ballads to fast funky boogie hits.

The numerous saxophonists, trumpeters and trombonists filled the court with full-bodied tunes, and regularly one of the 16-piece band would be invited up to perform a short solo, the drummer Gilson Lavis being the crowd's favourite who earnt a standing ovation for his impressive solo.

The first of the main soloists, Louise Marshall, sang a couple of slow ballads, with her powerful vocals filling the courtyards. Then Rico Rodriguez, a 75 year old trombonist, put down his trombone and sang a reggae version of 'What a Wonderful World'.

The capacity audience of 2700 were well behaved, and despite warnings on the tickets to remain seating, once Jools Holland picked up his guitar a few ladies couldn’t resist the urge to stand up and dance, and pretty quickly the rest of the crowd followed.

Alison Moyet, a soul singer and the main guest of the night, came on and sang 4 songs, perhaps a little short based on her headline billing, but each song was well appreciated by the crowd, who warmed to her deep and powerful voice and slower ballads.

Finally, soloist Ruby Turner got the audience on their feet again, and Jools, awarded an OBE in 2003, ended the main set showing off with some impressive keyboard techniques, with his fingers whizzing up and down the keyboard. Two encores later, the crowd departed contented, leaving the ghosts in peace.

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