SHE was the feistiest chick on the 1970s rock scene with tight jeans, wild two-toned hair and a perfectly pitched soulful bluesy voice, streets ahead of any of her British counterparts.

Today Scottish-born singer Maggie Bell is still hitting the high notes some 45 years after she first trod the boards, albeit in a more laid-back form on the road with slide guitar king Dave Kelly of the Blues Band.

The pair have teamed up to bring audiences a set of soul-fuelled bluesy songs including Patsy Cline, Nancy Griffith, Bonnie Raitt and Al Green numbers for shows across the UK, including one at Torrington's Plough Arts Centre next weekend.

"The songs are hand-picked; I know they're good if they've got the vibe. I feel the rhythm and I know I can make something of them," says Maggie.

"I can do songs with Dave that I can't with anyone else because he is one of the best slide guitar players in the world."

Maggie fronted the legendary Stone the Crows before going solo, then more or less disappeared off the radar. She did emerge to sing the theme tune for Scottish police drama Taggart.

"I was away in Holland for 20 years. I met a man," she explains. "Then I got a little dog and I had that responsibility. But after that time the thrill had gone; when the dog died, I left and came back here. I'd started something all those years ago and I didn't want it to end for ever. I'm quite pleased that at 64 years old I am still out there doing it."

Born into a musical Glasgow family, Maggie always sang and her love affair with blues and rock started early.

"The first time I went to see a live show it was Alex Harvey and it changed my life," says Maggie.

After she got up on stage to sing with Alex, he introduced her to his brother, Leslie, and the two started performing together.

Maggie worked as a window dresser by day so that she could sing at night. "I earned two pounds 11 shillings and fourpence a week," she recalls.

Eventually she and Leslie formed Stone the Crows, sharing bills with some of the finest in the business, including The Faces, earning fans at festivals and major concert halls on both sides of the Atlantic. Tragedy struck when Leslie died suddenly – he was electrocuted on stage during a soundcheck in 1972. The band vibe wasn't the same and Maggie strode out alone to great acclaim, making her mark alongside major artists like The Who, Lou Reed, Bad Company and Humble Pie.

After the Holland years, Maggie was lured back to British stages to form The British Blues Quintet with Zoot Money and former members of Stone the Crows. An invitation to sing with the Manfreds had led to collaborations with different artists, including Alan Price and Chris Farlowe. With Dave Kelly she is at her most exposed and vulnerable.

"The singing is easy-peasy for me," she says. "But it's being up close and personal with an audience that is difficult – I have to talk to people and I've never done that before."

Maggie is still in great shape and makes a point of looking after herself and her voice.

"People always used to want to take pictures of me with a bottle of Jack Daniels, but that just wasn't my style. I've never drunk heavy alcohol in my life," she says. "I do a lot of walking and I eat healthily. And I like to laugh a lot."

Maggie Bell and Dave Kelly play the Plough Arts Centre, Great Torrington, North Devon on Sunday, May 24. Box office: 01805 624624.