Monday nights in January have the potential to be the most depressing dates in the year — the perfect time to indulge in the blues to sooth your soul and lift your spirits. So a trip to the Famous Monday Blues on the Cowley Road to hear Oxfordshire band KingB was just the ticket.

The six piece outfit kicked off the set with a spirited account of Freddy King’s Tore Down, and almost from the first taps of Ian Clark’s sticks, the pleasingly full crowd at ‘The Bully’ was up and ready and rooting for more.

On vocals, Claire Johnson has an appealing purity of tone which commands attention. Her fresh and engaging delivery draws you into the story-lines of songs such as Ugly Papa (Dana Gillespie) and You can have my Husband in the style of Irma Thomas. But she can also be poignantly serious, as in the band’s reworking of Los Lobos’ My Baby’s Gone, and she can rock with the best of them, as with the Dylan classic Watching the River Flow.

Singing is not entirely the domain of Claire; on She’s Tough, the gravelly voice of Ian Grierson (harmonica) held our attention anticipating the classic phrase "that’s tough enough".

That was followed by Ian Phillips putting down his Strat to pick up the classy looking resonator, and belting out some spectacular country-style slide on Going to the Country. This was a number borrowed from Motor City Josh, one of the Monday Blues’ many visiting bands from across the pond.

John Lanyon’s intense guitar solo in Sonny Boy Williamson’s Help Me was a passionate and powerful moment. But it was the slow blues of Five Long Years which made the emotional pivot of the second set — with fine soloing from each of the band members, and Claire’s dramatic, spine-tingling finish.

Throughout the gig the driving rhythm section of Ian Clark on drums and John (Cat) Corlett on bass powered the band along. Looking around, the dance floor was heaving — and as promoter Silver Phil drew the gig to a close at midnight, it was hard to believe it was still Monday and still January. I left the club - my spirits lifted, transported by the blues. The gig was recorded live and I am waiting eagerly for my copy to hear it all again.

Jean Glendinning