GARETH JOHN
MEET
GARETH
Gareth John is a man with a lifelong love of all things swing, jazz, R&B, Soul, Rock n roll and funk. A singer, trumpet player, multi-instrumentalist, entertainer and educator, he released his debut album, 'As Long As I'm Singing' in 2018.
I grew up around swing and big band music. My Grandparents lived in the basement of our house for much of my childhood and with Grandma being a Musical Theatre singer and actress, and Grandad being heavily into the great big band leaders like Glen Miller and Ted Heath, I formed a strong affinity with the style. It was almost a foregone conclusion that I would be a performer of some sort. Having started on keyboard, Grandad bought me my first trumpet when I was ten years old and it all started from there.
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Fast forward to 2017 and I decided, for a whole host of reasons, to become a lead singer. My Dad always instilled in me that you can do anything you put your mind to if you’re willing to put in the work, and I did exactly that, going to singing lessons and starting to perform after under my own name. I released my debut album in 2018 and, having had a taste of performing in theatres as part of The South, I started to develop the idea that has now become The Story of Swing.
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Like everybody working in performing arts, the Covid-19 pandemic was a struggle in lots of ways, and massively delayed the launch of the new show. On the other hand, it meant I had the time to immerse myself in the music of the singers I idolised. I watched and listened to countless hours of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Michael Buble, Jamie Cullum, Gregory Porter, Bobby Darin & Harry Connick. All this learning time inspired me to put together an outstanding show telling the narrative of such a timeless, universally loved genre.
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In March 2022, that dream became a reality with the help of Miles Hancock and Jazz Colossus, as we did our debut show at the Deco Theatre in Northampton. This show was filmed and meant we could officially launch online and start to build a brand and a profile.
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The next year saw us do the occasional show in my hometown of Leicester, while I tried to grow the profile of the show and push it forward by booking shows myself, which was really difficult. We underwent some changes in personnel with Benjamin coming in as Musical Director, and we could both see the huge potential of the show
INSPIRATIONS
Gareth talks about the legendary Frank Sinatra, one of his biggest heroes and inspirations of the singers he pays homage to in his touring theatre show, The Story of Swing.
Gareth recounts the huge character that was Dean Martin, one of his biggest heroes and inspirations of the singers he pays homage to in his touring theatre show, The Story of Swing.
Gareth talks about another of his influences; the late great Bobby Darin. One of his biggest heroes and inspirations of the singers he pays homage to in his touring theatre show, The Story of Swing.