Ian Shaw

Named "Best Jazz Vocalist "at the BBC Jazz Awards in 2007 and 2004, Ian Shaw has already ammassed a number of highly acclaimed albums and is a popular performer both in the UK and the US.

Shaw’s career in performance began unusually for a jazz musician on the Alternative Cabaret Circuit, alongside such performers as Julian Clary, Rory Bremner and Jo Brand. Shaw was spotted by Dave Illic, jazz critic for "City Limits" and was described as "the voice of the decade". In the next few years Shaw moved from the singer-pianist format to working with his new band to an eventual move into jazz . Shaw has toured extensively in the UK, Europe and the States, his appearances on TV included guesting with Jools Holland, Top of the Pops, The Jack Dee Show, Christmas Night with the Stars (BBC), C4’s The Happening, TVAM, BBC Breakfast Show, BBC 2’s A Night of Love, BBC 2’s Jazz at the 606 and, more recently, numerous appearances on the Performance and Artsworld channels.

His collaborators over the years have included: Guy Barker, Mari Wilson, Kenny Wheeler, John Taylor, Iain Ballamy, Mornington Lockett, Barb Jungr, Cleo Laine, John Dankworth, Cedar Walton, Joe Lovano, Joe Beck, Papa Vasquez, Lew Soloff, Geoffrey Williams and Ray Brown. Shaw’s ongoing and highly popular collaboration is a celebrated duet show with Claire Martin, the UK’s finest female jazz singer. He guested on her 2002 album "Too Darn Hot!" (Linn AKD 243) . Together they have toured the world in an intimate duo setting with Shaw playing piano or sometimes with the BBC Big Band, with whom, over the last five years, Shaw has cemented a highly popular musical relationship. He has played the Harrogate International Festival with the Big Band along with concerts all over the UK including Stoke, BBC Leeds Live, to the Cork International Jazz Festival in 2002 where Shaw made his festival debut with this internationally acclaimed radio big band. Ian recently presented Big Band Special on Radio 2 which features the BBC Big Band.

His concert and festival appearances have been numerous. These include in the US venues: the Cine Grill in Hollywood, the Fairmont in Chicago, The Nest in Washington DC, Fez Club in New York, the Ellington Church in NYC, the Passadena auditorium in California, the Miami Film and Music Festival and the Arizona Jazz Party, to name a few. He has performed at the Hanoi Opera House and Ho Chi Minh City Opera in Vietnam. UK venues include the Purcell Room, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Blackheath Concert Halls, Ronnie Scott’s, the Vortex, the Jazz Café and the Barbican. Ian has played at most of the jazz festivals in the UK, including Brighton, Cork, Brecon, Liverpool, Birmingham, Edinburgh (where Shaw was nominated for a Perrier Award), Grimsby, Glasgow, Cheltenham, Scarborough, Swanage and St. Ives.

In 2002 Shaw performed in "Jerry Springer, the Opera", by Richard Thomas and Stewart Lee. Thomas created the part of the warm-up man/devil for Shaw. Shaw is a regular on BBC Radio 2, 3 and 4 as well as contributing to "Behind the Mask with Alison Moyet", a Something Else Production for Jazz FM.

As well as presenting Big Band Special for Radio 2, Shaw co-hosted The 2004 BBC Jazz Awards with Claire Martin, during which he picked up the Best Vocalist award. Shaw now presents, along with Charlie Crocker, a new jazz show on BBC Southern Counties every Tuesday at 9pm.

Shaw has become a hugely popular host and compere to a variety of events, including the historical last night party of the Royal Festival Hall and a glittering Christmas party to introduce Sally Greene, the charismatic new owner of Ronnie Scott’s to name a few.

In the summer of 2005, Shaw appeared in the new Adrian Shergold (“Dirty Filthy Love”, “Christmas Lights”) directed film, “Pierrepoint”, playing Percy, alongside Tim Spall and Juliet Stevenson. The film features a song, written by Shaw.

For further information - www.ianshaw.biz