THERE'S an evening of vintage jazz from the 1920s and 30s to look forward to in west Dorset this week.

Rachael Roberts & The Gatsby Gang will perform at the Bridport Arts Centre Jazz Café on Friday December 9.

Inspired by the vocal performances of legendary figures such as Sarah Vaughan and Billie Holiday, the band perform a unique selection of classics in swing and blues styles. Silky toned vocalist Rachael is joined by Tony Roberts (sax/clarinet), Richard Llewellyn (guitar) and Ben Taylor (double bass).

Rachael’s musical interests have spanned many different aspects of music, starting with a prolific period of her own songwriting; having developed a love of programming and sequencing when just 15 years old, Rachael had written a huge amount of material by the time she moved to Bristol in the late 90s.

Initially influenced by Portishead, Massive Attack and Zero 7, she was also listening to jazz vocalists such as Billie Holiday, Erykah Badu and Astrud Gilberto. Her electronic/jazz style tracks began getting attention with Gilles Peterson voting her in the top ten of ‘rising stars’.

Alongside Rachael’s songwriting she has, over the years, developed a love affair with jazz. She began performing jazz standards with The Chaser Quartet which led to the band recording a jazz album at ‘The Exchange’ studio in London. A love of earlier jazz styles has now reached fruition in the Gatsby Gang, backed by an all-star cast.

Saxophonist Tony Roberts has played with many jazz luminaries including John Dankworth, Humphrey Littleton, Kenny Wheeler and Ian Carr, and has also collaborated with ‘Pentangle’ bassist Danny Thompson and Miles Davis’ guitarist John McLaughlin.

Guitarist Richard Llewellyn has played with the Arcadia Jazz Band for 18 years and has been fortunate to work alongside artists such as Kathy Stobart, John Critchenson, Chris Gradwell and Henry Lowther and played in support bands for the likes of George Melly, Kenny Ball and Aker Bilk.

Bassist Ben Taylor started as a guitarist but since starting to play the bass has not looked back. He is in the Sound of Blue Note band which plays classic jazz repertoire associated with the iconic Blue Note record label. He has also worked with many outstanding musicians on the UK jazz scene including Gilad Atzmon, Liane Carroll and Tina May. In addition to his musical work, Ben is a highly skilled restorer and repairer of stringed instruments.

The Gatsby Gang is a band in which all the musicians express their love of early jazz styles, making for a rousing evocation of the Roaring Twenties and beyond. Stand out songs including the Ella Fitzgerald classic When I Get Low I Get High and the evergreen I Got Rhythm contribute to an infectious riot of feel-good music.

*Rachael Roberts & The Gatsby Gang at Bridport Arts Centre Jazz Cafe on Friday November 9 at 8pm. Contact the arts centre for tickets.