Friday – Ian Shaw: When Bowie met Joni

Line-Up:

Ian Shaw – Vocals

Barry Green – Piano

David Preston – Guitar

Ed Ireland – Bass

Dave Ohms – Drums

Award-winning vocalist and ‘a true song stylist for our times’ (Downbeat USA), Shaw, salutes these two songwriting titans. It features the songs of David Bowie and Joni Mitchell, written in parallel times, marking two fascinating Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame artists’ astonishing output. Shaw has recorded a critically highly praised album of Joni Mitchell (‘Drawn To All Things’ Linn Records) and has a personal connection to both, which is the core of this exciting show. In tonight’s performance, Ian is joined by the band to play his arrangements of these songs by two of the most popular and influential artists of recent decade.

In a career spanning three decades, Ian Shaw is widely regarded as the best male jazz vocalist the UK has produced with 19 albums to his own name. He is also a talented pianist, song writer, presenter, record producer and actor. Alongside performances at the major London venues, Shaw frequently tours throughout the UK at theatres, arts centres and jazz festivals. He has performed atnumerous venues in the US; three of his recordings are on US labels. Ian is a frequent visitor to Canada with a strong connectionwith the Toronto-based Jazz.FM91 and has toured Australia and the Far East several times. He regularly plays festivals and club dates on the Continent of Europe.

Shaw’s recordings and live performances as a jazz singer have been recognised by two BBC jazz awards (2004 and 2007), a Parliamentary award (2018) and numerous award nominations including Downbeat Magazine (2017) and Jazz FM (2013 and 2019).

Alongside solo shows and performances with his regular piano trio, Shaw is also much in demand as the featured soloist with big bands and orchestras both in the UK and internationally. His many collaborators over the years include Quincy Jones, Abdullah Ibrahim, Madeline Bell, Guy Barker, Kenny Wheeler, Cleo Laine, John Dankworth and Joe Beck. In a part written especially for him, Ian performed alongside Kurt Elling and Dee Dee Bridgewater at New York’s Lincoln Center and at London’s Southbank, in the premiere concerts of Elling’s radio-drama “The Big Blind”.

For over ten years Ian has presented the weekly Ronnie Scott’s Radio Show on Jazz FM which is syndicated worldwide and has recently added podcasting to his repertoire, with “Not Even Music” now in its third series.

His self-penned release (2023), ‘Greek Street Friday’ (‘smart and soulful’ The Guardian) was followed in 2024 with an album of Strayhorn classics, alongside saxophonist, Tony Kofi, ‘An Adventurous Dream’.

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