Shez Raja Featuring John Etheridge, Guitar

Shez Raja is a seriously talented electric bassist whose work in a fascinating mix of Indo-jazz, funk and groove settings has propelled him to the forefront of the UK jazz scene. Since the formation of his collective in 2007 his vibrant and fluent playing, combined with his innovation as a bandleader, have already drawn comparisons to the style of electric bass legend Jaco Pastorius. Tonight he will be featuring music from "Shez & the Collective’s newest album, "Gurutopia", his first on US/Dutch label Dot Time Records, and featuring guest performances by six-time Grammy nominee Mike Stern (Miles Davis, Billy Cobham) & superstar trumpeter & four-time Grammy winner Randy Brecker (Art Blakey, Brecker Bros). With this latest CD, Shez continues to cement his reputation as an artist of international prestige. He leads a formidable line-up tonight featuring Vasilis Xenopoulos on saxophone, Alex Stanford on keyboard and Chris Nickolls on drums. However, adding even more intensity and spark to this 606 gig will be Shez’s Special Guest, guitarist John Etheridge, who first took the UK jazz scene by storm in the 1970’s as a member of the classic fusion band Soft Machine, and as guitarist in the band of celebrated swing jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli. A superb and versatile musician with a vast reservoir of creative energy, John includes work with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Tony Williams, Yehudi Menuhin, Pat Metheny and John Williams on his extensive CV (while also leading several of his own groups, notably the “Zappatistas”, his tribute to Frank Zappa). As Shez says: "Expect exciting music that’s full of surprises – a sonic kaleidoscope of euphoric jazz, thundering funk, tuneful ragas and intoxicating grooves!" Hmm, that sounds like something you will not want to miss…

“Multi-layered and imaginative” Manchester Evening News; “The hip-shaking mix of Eastern song lines and funky Western dance-beats never wavers”Evening Standard; “If the Mahavishnu Orchestra were reformed with a reincarnated Jaco Pastorius in charge it would sound pretty similar”The Guardian; “Chic, contemporary & groove-laden” The Musician; "A heady brew of bass-driven funky jazz and world fusion that takes you to another place" Guitar & Bass Magazine; “One of the best guitarists in the world”Pat Metheny; “A virtuoso on acoustic and electric guitars” Time Out