Joe Jackson, Carling Academy, London

Joe Jackson, a graduate of the Royal College of Music, took US radio by storm with the sneering "Is She Really Going Out With Him?" in 1979, but soon left the new wave behind to blaze an Elvis Costello-like trail through genres, taking in big band jive, soundtracks and orchestral music as well as his sleek New York masterpiece Night and Day.

He was ahead of the current reformation curve, reuniting the Joe Jackson Band in 2003. He appears here with two of its originals, drummer Dave Houghton - playing a futuristic Roland kit - and Graham Maby on five-string bass.

The trio start with a slowed-down version of "Steppin' Out", Jackson's last transatlantic Top 10 hit from 1983, and "Another World", also from Night and Day, the album on which the composer proved it was possible to be a modern-day George Gershwin and take the mainstream with you.

Sitting behind a grand piano, he seems surprised by the warm reception of the audience, who sing along throughout the evening and listen intently to the jazzier moments. At times, with the three musicians taking cues from each other and Jackson changing the set list, the gig seems to belong in homelier space - Ronnie Scott's, say.

He's certainly not resting on his laurels, debuting several songs yet to be recorded, including "Wasted Time", a sublime ballad about lovers trying to reunite and reignite the flame, which shows the singer-songwriting upstarts currently featured on Radio 2 how it should be done.

The ebullient "On Your Radio", from I'm The Man, his second 1979 album, now seems a defiant boast from an artist who has not been treated well by the industry. He refers to "the evil empire, Universal Records", which managed to misspell "Love At First Light" on The Very Best of Joe Jackson (just out). "Just to set the record straight, it's Light, not Sight. I think I should do it."

Moving seamlessly from the morning-after song into the new-man anthem "It's Different For Girls", he shows that he has always been one of the most perceptive writers of his generation. He remains an engaging performer, happily covering Steely Dan and Duke Ellington and hinting at a jazzier, Blue Note-flavoured future on "The Optimum Trend".

"I've just seen the best piece of graffiti I've ever seen backstage: Sting, where is thy death?" he says about his former A&M label-mate. On this night, Jackson's talent sparkles as much as the light catching his diamond earring.