JAZZ sensation Gordon Haskell is preparing to wow a Wharfedale audience.

The singer-songwriter, who has been described as ‘a brilliant mix of Bill Withers and James Taylor with the feel of JJ Cale’, will play at Otley Courthouse on Saturday, October 26.

Haskell has been consistently winning audiences with his warmth and golden voice for decades.

After 35 years of dedication to developing his craft as a singer songwriter, he finally broke through in 2001 with his hit song How Wonderful You.

The song reached Number 2 in the UK chart and also topped charts right across Europe.

Haskell consolidated that success the following year when his albums Harry’s Bar and Shadows on the Wall reached Number 2 and Number 44, respectively, in the UK chart.

The albums also entered the Top 20 in Germany, France, Poland, Finland and the Netherlands and both albums achieved gold status.

Since then he has continued to perform and record mostly in Europe, travelling from his home in Greece, and released the book The Road to Harry’s Bar.

Having had a handful of sporadic concerts and successful live appearances since, he has returned to the road in 2019 to bring his jazz/blues-influenced songbook and voice back to audiences nationwide.

His new shows are designed to be ‘up-close and intimate’ and his Otley performance will start at 8pm.

Tickets cost £16.50.

Comedy, meanwhile, will take centre stage at the Courthouse the day before Haskell’s show on Friday, October 25.

Justin Moorhouse: Northern Joker will show comedian Justin exploring his pervasive sense of uncertainty.

Confused by everything from Brexit to the state of American politics, he is also becoming un-anchored in his personal life where ‘one kid is leaving home, the dog is getting older and doesn’t need much walking, and the youngest kid hits thirteen and cancels the family subscription to The Beano’.

The promotional material for the show adds: “On top of this the golden age of the Northern straight white male comedian has gone the way of the dinosaurs. How will he adapt if he wants to survive?

“What next for this Northern Joker?”

Tickets cost £14. To book a place at these or other forthcoming events at the Courthouse visit www.otleycourthouse.org.uk, call (01943) 467466 or pop into the Courthouse, on Courthouse Street.