The Ray Charles Experience is a terrific show by a consummate showman who dances as well as he sings and who, even at 5pm on a cold afternoon, got the Spiegeltent audience on its feet – and some of them dancing – with his infectious energy, humour, musicianship and vitality.

With several changes of costume, Melvin Brown showed how Ray Charles built on his formative influences of gospel, blues and classical piano, and how he adapted creatively to each musical wave from the Big Band era through Fats Domino and Howlin’ Wolf to the Beatles.

Melvin traced the main phases of Ray Charles’s career with a few well-chosen words between songs but this was no musicology lecture; the story was told by the songs themselves, alternating the trademark slower ballads, such as Georgia, with more upbeat numbers.

Melvin does not try to imitate Ray Charles but his voice has the timbre and richness to sound right in these songs; yet towards the end of the show, he did a series of brilliant “if they were here, this is how they’d sing” take-offs, including Otis Redding and James Brown.

Melvin was supported by a very good band who said they have no name but who seem at home in all the different styles of music they have to play in order to keep up with him, and the Spiegeltent is the ideal venue for this show with everyone close to the stage.