Ahmad Jamal hasn't lived here in a while, but the Homewood-reared pianist and Westinghouse High School alumnus still gives props to his roots.

"We have one of the most important towns in the world when it comes to artistic [endeavors]," Jamal says, adding that it even rivals New Orleans and Memphis.

In fact, Jamal has a greater connection to the Manchester Craftmen's Guild, where he is appearing this weekend with bassist James Cammack and drummer Idris Muhummad, than is obvious.

Reason? "I picked out the first Steinway for the Guild. I know just about everything about the Guild, including the wonderful work Bill Strickland is doing over there."

Arguably best known for his 1958 hit trio rendition of "Poinciana," the 77-year-old Jamal nevertheless has never considered himself the leader of a "small ensemble," as he calls it.

"I've been in a small ensemble and large ensemble all my life," Jamal says, even working at times with players from symphony orchestras. And the size of the band doesn't always matter either, as "Sometimes you can get a seven-piece sound out of three players, and sometimes you can't get a seven-piece sound out of seven players."

Jamal's fans will be pleased to learn that he will have a new album, "It's Magic," coming out June 10 on Birdology/Dreyfus Records. It has been available for about a month and already climbing the charts in Europe, where he had been touring.

"It's Magic" contains original material and "they're going to hear some tracks, if not all," Jamal says.

An upcoming September show will find him in New York, appearing with Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. He says he'd been approached for the past five years to do the gig but didn't have the time until now. It promises to be a treat for him because, he says, "I can't afford to take 18 pieces with me on the road."

With other upcoming stops in New York, Cambridge, Mass., San Juan, P.R., and two venues in France, Jamal says, "We'll be busy the rest of the year." The Guild shows this weekend represent "another chapter in the life of Ahmad Jamal."