"We're going to play a sort of floaty-floaty thing now," the saxophonist Don Weller offered to the Bull's Head audience, in an offhand sotto voce halfway between defiance and apology. "We're going to . . . float about for a bit. You can float about a bit yourselves, if you like." It was hardly the kind of statement of intent or invitation you might catch Wynton Marsalis coming out with. But the distance between the halting lugubriousness of Weller's stage presence and the world-class power and fluency of his sax-playing has been part of his enduring charm over three decades on the British jazz scene.
Weller is one of those rare musicians on today's jazz scene who sounds as if he has intuited at least as much as he's studied about how jazz works, and who has the kind of cavalier approach to improvising over chords that Sonny Rollins does. Even when he sounds grumpy and indecisive he makes a creative feature of it, as the late Ben Webster did.
This being the opening tour date for a programme that requires the players to keep a close eye on their music-stands, things were tentative at the outset. But a crackling funk rhythm section featuring the skilful John Donaldson on keys, Patrick Zambonin on bass guitar and Adam Riley on drums quickly sharpened everyone's senses in preparation for Weller's constantly changing backdrops. A front line including Weller, fellow saxophonist Chris Biscoe and the sure-footed and silver-toned trumpeter Steve Waterman delivered a string of solos that sounded as if they were generated by the repertoire, rather than stamped on top of it.
The music moved between abrupt, Headhunters-like riffy grooves with zigzagging bop lines overlaid on them, and airy sambas that deceptively suggested the Come Dancing show before turning into malevolent, bass-heavy swingers. There were pieces in multifarious tempos moving from warped township clamours to lazily dragging blues, the occasional "floaty-floaty thing" and rollicking funk outings that suggested the Dirty Dozen Brass Band without a tuba. Through it all, Weller imperturbably maintained his freedom to move between reverberating low sounds and squirming mid-range runs. Chris Biscoe exhibited his familiar deft intelligence and young Manchester guitarist Stuart McCallum - unfazed by the music's restless changes of shape - kept a cool head, and a melodically subtle sound.
· At Matt & Phred's, Manchester, tonight. Box office: 0161-831 7002. Then touring.
