JAMESTOWN – On Friday from 7 to 9 p.m., the Spire Theater, located at 317 E. 3rd St. in Jamestown, will present a jazz concert featuring the Bill Ward Band.

The Bill Ward Band has opened concerts in the Chautauqua Institution Ampitheater for Loretta Lynn, Waylon Jennings and Diamond Rio.

Band members include Bill Ward on guitar and vocals, John Cross on saxophones, Tom Swanson on guitar, and Paul Liuzzo on bass.

Selections to be performed include a wide variety of styles including blues, swing, country, gospel and cow jazz. Area jazzman, John Cross will host the program.

Featured artist Bill Ward is a singer/-songwriter from Western NY. Now in his fourth decade of performing, he was a part of the burgeoning ’70s folk/acoustic scene in the area, eventually finding his way to Austin, Texas, where he “found his voice” performing in the town where artists like Nanci Griffith, Townes Van Zandt, and Jerry Jeff Walker had also cut their musical teeth.

Returning to western NY, Ward forged alliances with some of the best artists in the Northeast, eventually releasing his landmark recording, “Highway in the Desert,” which featured his all-star band and a host of special guests, including Muscle Shoals Hall of Fame guitarist Will McFarlane.

In 2002 he founded the Mayville Bluegrass Festi-val, which has garnered international attention, featuring artists such as Vassar Clements, Peter Rowan, Claire Lynch. Tony Rice, and Norman Blake, as well as some of the nation’s best young bluegrass performers. To that end, his most recent release, “The Christmas Sessions,” features Ward with the Doerfels, who at the time were all under the age of eighteen.

Ward has been named “Artist of the Year” by the Chautauqua County Arts Council; “Promoter of the Year” for his festival and collaborative work; and is a member of the Chautauqua County Music Hall of Fame.

He continues to perform and record, and uses his gifts as a worship leader, teaching artist, community developer, and promoter to help foster arts programs and festivals in the tourist-rich Chautauqua County area.

The concert is free and open to the public.