Chancery Blame
A potent cocktail of gypsy sounds, borrowed, blagged and muddled with a twist of klezmer and a dash of dark rock n roll. MORE

The Destroyers
A riotous 15 piece collective.  A unique hybrid of Balkan/ Klezmer/ Gypsy styles, beat poetry and gothic um-pah.   MORE

Flutterbydaisy
Dresses for broken dolls, butterflies and fairy ballerinas.
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Knifeworld
A sprawling and unique psychedelic tour de force from Kavus Torabi (Cardiacs/ Guapo/ The Monsoon Bassoon) MORE

Mediaeval Baebes
Fairytale whimsy, otherworldly enchantment, and supernatural allure from the UK’s number one selling unique vocal group. MORE

Melpomeni
She won’t just rub salt in your wounds, she will finish you off with a squeeze of lemon and a lick of tequila.  MORE

Nick Marsh
Poetic without being florid; reflective without being maudlin; brittle and brutal whilst also deeply romantic.   MORE

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Rasp Thorne & The Briars
An unruly mixture of carnival dirges, gothic country and idiosynchratic yet immediate punk n roll.  MORE

Ray Gelato
The Godfather of Swing considered by many to be the last in a long line of classic jazz entertainers and a true showman.  MORE

Hey Boy! Hey Girl!
A brand new album and live show of classic boy/girl duets from Ray Gelato with special guest Kai Hoffman MORE

“He plays what he means and he means what he plays” - Jools Holland

“This may be good time music (retro for sure) but it takes balls to play it this well” - Jazzwise

“Gelato’s dapper mixture of swing and Louis Prima jumping jive remains as invigorating as ever” -  The Times

“To underestimate Ray and his albums is a mistake… he possesses real artistry” - Evening Standard

“You close your eyes and hear shades of each tenor sax giant in his playing” - Jazzwax New York

“Awesome sax man” - Sam Butera

Ray Gelato’s first musical influences stemmed from his father, a US airman, living in London. Ray's dad had a huge collection of records by artists such as Sammy Davis, Dean Martin and Bill Haley.  Later Ray discovered the sounds of Louis Jordan and Louis Prima, who would become huge influences on his music.  On taking up tenor sax as a teenager, Ray was introduced to such sax greats as, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Illinois Jacquet, Ben Webster etc.  Around this time, Ray would ask to sit in with any live band that would let him!  It was then that he realised that music was to be his life.

Now considered by many to be one of the last in a long line of classic jazz entertainers and a true showman, Ray’s live repertoire includes a mixture of classic swingin’ standards from ‘the greats’ mixed with original self-penned songs which have become audience favourites such as ‘A Pizza You’ and ‘Mambo Gelato’. The Times newspaper got it spot on when they wrote, “Gelato evokes an era when musicians understood that the point of jazz was not to keep the public at a polite distance”

In addition to regular headline slots at ‘Ronnie’s’, Ray has also performed throughout the UK, Europe, USA, Canada and Brazil at prestigious venues, festivals and events such as The Blue Note (NYC), Edinburgh Festival, VE Day celebrations in Trafalgar Square, Proms In The Park, Montreal Jazz Festival, Sir Paul McCartney’s wedding, The Ritz London for HM The Queen and opened for Robbie Williams at The Royal Albert Hall.  Recently Ray headlined the 1940’s Torch Club at the inaugural Vintage At Goodwood Festival held in August 2010.

His multiple award nominations include BBC Radio 2 Jazz Awards, Jazz Artist Of The Year, Best Of Jazz, BBC Radio 2 ‘Heart Of Jazz’ Award.  In 2007 Ray won Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Award for ‘Best UK Small Band’.

Gelato has performed live with his band on TV shows such as Strictly Dance Fever, ITV’s This Morning, TOTP2 , The Terry & Gaby Show and BBC News.  Ray's songs have made many TV and movie appearances including Enigma, Scandal, Inventing The Abbotts, The Perfect Man, Levi’s Dockers commercial, No Reservations and most recently his version of ' If You Were The Only Girl In The World' was featured in the US TV series ‘Hung’.

Ray also combines his love of music and food with a cookery book that features his favourite recipes that he has picked up on his travels.  ‘Cooking With Ray’ comes with 7 track CD of Ray Gelato’s music to cook by and the end of 2010 will add another string to the front man’s bow with the launch of a ‘Cooking With Ray’ YouTube channel!  

In addition, Ray is currently working with American singer Kai Hoffman on a brand new album of classic vocal duets called ‘Hey Boy! Hey Girl!’.  Due for release in 2011, the album will be showcased with a new touring show in theatres across the UK.

www.raygelato.com

Ray Gelato

Cookin With Ray Press Release