A POPULAR jump jive band has vowed to play on - despite having sound equipment stolen.

The thieves had targeted a lock-up garage in Nelson Drive, Leigh, where the PA system the Zoltans use for larger gigs was stored.

The break-in happened while the band were playing a gig at Hornchurch Jazz Club and was discovered when they came to unload the rest of their gear.

The band hadn’t needed the large PA gear worth £650 that night so it had been left behind.

Defiant bandleader Rick Dawson said: “We won’t cancel, it’s an established band and we have to carry on playing, so we will manage somehow, but we obviously want it traced and the stuff brought back. It goes without saying really.”

The incident happened on the evening of Sunday, January 27. Anyone with information should call Southend police on 101.