THE first Broughton Festival of Jazz got the town on its feet with some stomping jazz, and there promises to be even more next year.

The towns' pubs, Victory Hall and Eccle Riggs Manor played host to a total of 14 acts over the course of the weekend.

A sultry evening session with Jazz Girl typified the proceedings.

Fans wrestled for toe-tapping space in the packed Manor Arms as the threesome delivered some truly soul stirring tunes with powerful vocals.

Slashing rain stopped play in the square on Sunday, but the Magnolia Blue Jazz Orchestra got the indoors crowd dancing, high clapping and gawping with amazement with their octave busting trombone and clarinet.

Most of the bands comprised true jazz veterans, who held their instruments like beloved old lap dogs.

The site of Just Jazz's lead brass just about sums up the mood.

With laughter lines pointing skywards, lard-lovin' belly pointing south, and cheeks swelling east and west, he held the crowd with a Duke Ellington classic squeezed through a favourite trumpet.

The crowd soaked it all up with laid-back smiles of satisfaction.

It was a good moment for Broughton.

Organiser Paul Loftus, of Broughton Bakery, was blown away by the festival's reception.

"It's been spot on.

Numbers have been great, we've been really pleased with everything."

Now the word is out he says, he's promising an even bigger Broughton jazz odyssey for 2001.