Stax of Soul

Stax of Soul are playing Bibis Italianissimo Restaurant & Cocktail Bar on Sunday 29 November, with two separate shows on the one day. They're a nine-piece soul band from Manchester, and they've been playing together since 1983, so they've got more than four decades behind them. Over that time they've built their following on Motown, STAX and Northern Soul hits, alongside tributes to The Blues Brothers and James Brown.

They describe themselves as the country's leading Soul and Motown live party band, and the sound comes from a full brass section, driving rhythms and dynamic vocals. It's a big band for a small room, which is part of the draw. The set is built on those Motown and STAX classics, and the tributes to The Blues Brothers and James Brown sit alongside them, so you'll get a good mix of the soul and R&B they've spent forty years working on.

Bibis is a family-owned Italian restaurant and cocktail bar in Leeds city centre, open since 1974, and its stage hosts live bands and tribute acts every couple of weeks. This is a double-show day, so you've got a choice of when to go: the matinee has booking from 12:30pm with the show starting at 2:30pm, and the evening has booking from 6:00pm with the show starting at 8:00pm.

Tickets are £20, and you'll need to order food as well — the festive menu is £47, or you can go à la carte, with a minimum of two courses per person. There's a welcome drinks reception to start with, and since it's a restaurant, you'll be eating and drinking as part of the afternoon or evening. If you're planning to go, it's worth remembering that the booking time is well ahead of the show, so you've got plenty of time to settle in before the music starts.