It’s not every day you hear someone repeatedly yelling “Sidmouth’s got the funk!”, but surprisingly it happened on Sunday night on the Kennaway House lawn.

But then this was no ordinary person, and this was no ordinary night in Sidmouth. For this was Mica Paris, MBE, bringing the inaugural Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival to a triumphant close on the event’s fourth and final day.

Sidmouth Herald: Mica Paris singing on the final night of the first Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival.Mica Paris singing on the final night of the first Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival. (Image: Paul Strange)

Paris has been dubbed the “British Queen of Soul”, and we were certainly in the presence of musical royalty, because on the previous evening the singer had appeared at the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Concert outside Buckingham Palace, entertaining 22,000 people and a TV audience of millions.

Sidmouth Herald: Mica Paris singing on the final night of the first Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival.Mica Paris singing on the final night of the first Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival. (Image: Paul Strange)

The Sidmouth crowd may have been more modest, but Paris gave it everything in a frenetic, funk-fuelled set. Fronting a tight four-piece band, she bounced on stage and opened proceedings crisply with her melodic, loping hit “Like Dreamers Do”. She sang more of her late 1980s hits – the emotional “Where Is The Love?” and a potent “Breathe Life Into Me” – before dropping the pace.

Sidmouth Herald: Mica Paris singing on the final night of the first Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival.Mica Paris singing on the final night of the first Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival. (Image: Paul Strange)

Paris explained that lockdown had made her reflect on her 35-year career, how she’d left her gospel roots to sing secular, and how her new album, “Gospel”, had helped her to return. Choosing songs from the LP, she performed a rousing “Mamma Said”, a heartfelt take on Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come”, and Labi Siffre’s “(Something Inside) So Strong”.

Then she was off again with a stupendous version of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together”, bringing the crowd to their feet. They remained dancing for the rest of the show, which Paris brought slickly to a close with her first hit, “My One Temptation”. The crowd begged for more and she happily obliged with an energetic take on Tom Browne’s “Funkin’ For Jamaica”, featuring the aforementioned ad-libbed line, “Sidmouth’s got the funk!”

It was a stunning finale to a very successful debut for the Sidmouth International Jazz and Blues Festival. More power to festival director Ian Bowden and his team, who are already making plans for next year’s event. I can’t wait.