Later... with Jools Holland

BBC 2 at 11:40pm (Other show times...)

A fine end to the series, spearheaded by Stereophonics. The Welsh rockers, fronted by Kelly Jones (pictured), perform The Bartender And The Thief, You're My Star and Local Boy In The Photograph from their first collection of hits, Decade In The Sun.

There's also some hot gospel, blues and soul - and astonishingly high vocals - from Eli Paperboy Reed and his seven-piece backing band The True Loves. Solange - aka Solange Knowles, the younger sister of Beyonce - offers some even higher vocals and has a nice line in 60s-inspired R&B. She performs I Decided and Sandcastle Disco.

Then there's Dengue Fever, a six-piece LA band who combine Cambodian pop music with psychedelic rock. They play Tiger Phone Card and Seeing Hands from their Venus On Earth album.

Louise Marshall, singing Waterloo Bridge with Jools Holland, offers one of the show's finest moments, but above all look out for Carolina Chocolate Drops - a superb trio with a rich tradition of fiddle and banjo music from Carolina's Piedmont. They play Real Old Mountain Dew from their Heritage album.

A new series of Later... with Jools Holland is due next year, with the Hootenanny to come soon. Let's hope that next year the programme continues the tradition of the live half-hour show on the Tuesday followed by the longer version on the Friday. It's certainly breathed new life into things.

Reviewer - Paul Strange

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