Glenn Tilbrook, is, of course, best known for his work in Squeeze, with whom he has been singing, playing and writing songs for many years, writes Templeton Blake.

Squeeze has recorded 13 albums to date, and many, many singles most of which have been hits of some kind: some very big, some very small.

More than this, however, Tilbrook and Squeeze have become synonymous with a particularly London-oriented style of high quality pop song that bears comparison with the classic songs of Ray Davies and The Kinks not to mention young pretenders such as Blur and our very own Supergrass.

Everything Tilbrook does has class and style, and a distinctively unpretentious quality of good humour coupled with strong melody.

Born in Woolwich, South East London, he has been smitten with music ever since his mum took him to see Cliff Richard in the film Summer Holiday.

"Any ideas I may have had of pursuing the more traditional career options of a five-year-old, such as a policeman or fireman, went out of the window," he said.

"Being in a band, travelling around in a double-decker bus, stopping at a beach somewhere and being surrounded by adoring fans as you played a tune or two looked too good to me to consider anything else. Fortunately, I never changed my mind." Growing up in the Sixties with an older brother who was a keen fan of the Rolling Stones, The Who and the Small Faces, the young Glenn had to take a different position and so favoured the Monkees and the Beatles. Later there was some common ground with Motown and Stax.

Undoubtedly, the music that Glenn absorbed throughout this most fertile period in pop history has served as his biggest influence as a songwriter. Growing up in a musical culture where writing original songs was what pop musicians did, Glenn formed Squeeze with writing partner Chris Difford in 1973.

The first hit single, Take Me I'm Yours, came in 1978 and was followed by a steady stream of hits, many of which have passed into the canon of pop folklore and will surely be sung in pub singalongs as long as pub singalongs exist.

Outside of Squeeze, Glenn has played and sung on records by Elvis Costello and Aimee Mann and on Mark Knopfler's current solo album. Songs he has co-written with Chris Difford have been covered by the likes of Sting, Joe Cocker, and Grandmaster Flash.

Now Glenn Tilbrook has finally decided the time is right for some solo records and a solo tour which arrives at The Zodiac tonight.

His first solo single, entitled Parallel World, will be released on November 13. This will be followed by an album that has still to be named and Tilbrook says he is open to suggestions.

Why not give him a few clues at The Zodiac tonight? It's a gig not to be missed.