In another life Clare Teal might have made a dependable Northern club comedian. The Yorkshire-born singer certainly has a sure grasp of comic timing and possesses the knack of making throwaway remarks hit the target. The club's former proprietor - a droll joke-teller in his own right - would surely have admired Teal's technique. Her sunny disposition goes a long way to accounting for her commercial success. There's certainly something to be said for an artist who chooses not to wallow in angst. Still, over the course of 90 minutes, the wisecracking and self-mocking banter can wear thin.

Teal is an assured vocalist who has the rare ability to shift from exuberant swing to Dusty Springfield-style pop and the brand of easy-going songbird material that used to be the preserve of the likes of Doris Day. But that relentlessly jolly presentation tends to undermine the emotional impact of her more intimate material.

Otherwise, this was a forceful set, with much of the material taken from her new album, Get Happy. After the flirtation with Bacharach-style pop on her previous release, Paradisi Carousel, she has now returned to more mainstream jazz terrain, although without losing her eye for a well-crafted melodic hook.

The band she brought to Ronnie Scott's worked up a brisk head of steam, with the full-blooded pianist Jim Watson nudging the rhythm section along, and the bebop specialist Anita Wardell making a guest appearance as one of the backing singers. Teal herself was nursing an arm in a sling after falling on the stairs at her home, but her injury did little to dampen her sense of mischief.

The close harmonies on In a Mellotone proved an affectionate exercise in swing pastiche, while Begin the Beguine was dispatched with absolute confidence. Tea for Two was taken at a breathless clip in tribute to the late Anita O'Day. Teal's gifts as a songwriter are definitely not to be underrated: All For Love swoons and sighs in authentic Latin lounge-lizard fashion, and Get On It, Sam is a genuinely catchy anthem. All she needs is to take herself seriously.

Queen's Theatre, Hornchurch, May 26

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