Matt Schofield has been rated as one of the top 10 British blues guitarists of all time. Now fans at the Burnley International Rock and Blues Festival will get the chance to find out why.

JOHN ANSON asks the questions...

Burnley, Colne and, most recently, Clitheroe Grand -you appear to have a liking for East Lancashire venues. Has the area been good to you? There certainly seems to be a long-running tradition of having the country’s biggest blues festivals in the north and we’re happy to play anywhere there are real music lovers. I was born in Manchester so it always feels good to get back to that part of the world.

Who will be joining you on stage? The band will be the latest incarnation of my organ trio. We have Jonny Henderson on B3 organ and bass. I've been playing with him for over 16 years now, and he’s been part of all my work as a solo artist, and is very much the foundation of the band’s sound. And on drums we have Kevin Hayes, from San Francisco. He's been with us for nearly two years now, after spending 19 years in the Robert Cray Band, and performing and recording with many other greats over the years, including John Lee Hooker, Van Morrison, Etta James, BB King and Albert Collins.

What kind of show can we expect from you? With a pretty extensive back catalogue of original songs, we change up the set pretty much every night these days, so every gig is a bit different. In fact, we never work from a set list at all. I tell the guys in the band what the first number will be, and then I see what the vibe from the crowd is and I call them out from there. I like to tailor it to the feel of the evening. As for guests, we’ll have to see who is around. Last time at Burnley I ended up jamming with Hamilton Loomis, which is something we do anytime we get a chance.

For those who haven’t seen you before, how would describe your music? A combination of everything we enjoy and love — a mix of all our influences. While I have my own specific influences as a guitar player, and very much consider myself a blues player, and the approach is guitar-based, the music as a whole encompasses elements of funk, rock, jazz and soul along with blues.

What does the summer have in store for you? We’re mainly hitting festivals, back and forth, between the US and Canada, and Europe.

You’ve produced three Ian Siegal albums, any chance of a duet in Burnley? I’d say there's a good chance Ian will join us for a song.

*Matt Schofield Trio, Burnley Mechanics, Sunday, 7.30pm