The last quarter, where bass notes anchor what I’ve always thought of as a recitative section (what jazzmen might call “the stops”), became a series of mini-cadenzas for Etheridge, before both, remaining true to Bach, brought it crashing to its magnificent conclusion. They ended with a tour-de-force arrangement by Williams that pointed to the heights these two are likely to scale the longer they perform together; this was the first time they have paired up.Now called “Extra Time”, the number was originally titled “8-4-7″ in reference to the first three chords in Bach’s C Minor Prelude. Music from Mali and Senegal flowed from their fingers when they joined each other, but in their own compositions, the combination moved to another level.Etheridge, who swapped between acoustic and electric guitars, laid down a series of arpeggios to introduce his “Strange Comforts”, a tune that nicely unsettled the ear with its chord changes, and then let Williams take over harmonic duties, allowing him to solo more freely. John Etheridge’s week-long residency at Pizza Express promised “exceptionally special guests” from the guitarist’s extraordinarily varied career. He started the week with a guest who certainly merited that billing, the classical guitarist John Williams The contrasts between the two were many. Williams, quietly spoken, produced notes from his classical guitar that were oboe-like in sweetness and intensity. Etheridge was supremely laid-back, calling out to the audience for a file after he broke a nail, and cracking jokes about his sartorial deficiencies.

But there was nothing lacking in his playing, in which his soaring improvisations were the perfect foil to Williams’s more formal technique.
Both played solo numbers, Etheridge dipping into the standards with “God Bless the Child” and Sonny Rollins’s “Doxy” and Williams demonstrating his mastery of the Latin American classical canon. On the strength of this performance Orton’s light hasn’t faded just yet.Touring until 28 February; www.bethorton.mu. The band (rhythm guitar, bass, drums, and piano) hails from Chicago – aside from the piano player who’s a Norfolk boy. They remain professional shadows throughout.”Feral” is her Joni Mitchell moment, and once again touches on the recurring theme of soured relationships, alluding to the strength of feral children who know that there are “no words for the infinity of ghosts”.

Like so much of the new material, it sounds fully formed in a live setting, and like her voice, has a richer tone. Even when she manages to rock out with the fervour of a less-contrived Alanis Morissette on “Shopping Trolley” it doesn’t sound forced.The best moments are saved until last when Orton dedicates a beautifully sparse version of “Pieces of Sky” to a mysterious local muse, and a perfectly weighted encore performance of “She Cries Your Name” and the delicately fractured “Feel to Believe”. But there’s also veiled lightness to her demeanour; a sense of not taking herself too seriously, and of being extremely grateful for the chance to air her new compositions. And the setlist is drawn extensively from her new material – her occasional forays into the back catalogue done largely solo with a single spotlight marking out her gangly frame.By the time she gets to “Heart Of Soul” she’s visibly relaxed and cranking up the passion, adding extra gravitas to the lyrics: “so tell me what Neil Young said, you pick a flower and it’s dead”. It certainly makes the rolling freight train rhythm of “Rectify” and the achingly beautiful solo rendition of the eternally crepuscular “Stolen Car” that much more endearing.Long legs set slightly apart, shoulders slightly hunched under a tight denim shirt, it’s hard not to agree with the Mercury Music panel when they dubbed her “queen of the heartbreak vocal” after her 1996 debut Trailer Park. In a typically British way you find yourself willing her along, hoping that she will tune the guitar in time, that her silly jokes will be funny, and that her apologies will be appreciated But her in-between banter is engagingly refreshing.

She doesn’t do super-gloss production and her shows are all the better for it. Expectations are higher, there’s a fear of stagnation, and equally of alienating the fans she’s managed to accumulate. It’s been four years since her last album, Daybreaker, and her first UK tour since 2004, so when she tells the audience that she’s glad they like her new songs, and that it always takes a while to get used to a new pair of shoes, she genuinely means it.Orton is one of those performers who you can see unravel in front of your very eyes. If you wanted a folk twang to your nocturnal beats, Orton was your woman. So how did she make the transition from dance beats to North American-style folk? Well, the answer lies in her initial inspirations.