40 years 606 Jazz Club – 10 years Redtenbacher’s Funkestra

BIG congrats!

Flutist Steve Rubie’s 606 Jazz Club is 40 years old – what an incredible achievement – Steve who has owned and managed this legendary jazz club in West London for four decades surely deserves a massive award and if I would have one – I surely hand it to him – in GOLD!

40 years – 40 bands

As part of the 40 year celebrations (from 18th to 30th of October) the Redtenbacher’s Funkestra will play the ‘middle set’ on Friday, 28th of October – musically ‘sandwiched’ between the fantastic Jason Rebello Trio and Jeremy Stacey‘s & Jason Rebello’s groovalicious ‘Actual Spoof’. Sounds like a fun night out to me!

More details here at the clubs website.

10 years at the 606 Jazz Club

Looking back at our own history at the club – our first gig at ‘the 6’ (as it is called in ‘muso’ circles) was on Friday, 15th of June 2006 and we have gigged there ever since, about every quarter on a Friday night – what fun!

Our first gig’s line-up was made up of Eran Kendler on guitar, Jim Hunt on tenor saxophone, Hannah Vasanth on keys, Accy Yeats on drums, yours truly on bass and special guests Elliott Randall on guitar and Wayne Hernandez on vocals. We played three (!) sets that night and gave our very best…luckily for us Steve thought it good enough to book us for the next 10 years…

In the (understated) words of our drummer Mike Sturgis – “The shows? – we are gaining on them…” 🙂

Here is to the next 10 years – We are already looking forward to celebrating 20 years of the Funkestra at the 606 Jazz Club at their 50 year anniversary in 2026!

The funkateers on the night will be: Quentin Collins (trp), Simon Allen (tenor sax), Eran Kendler (gtr), Karl Vanden Bossche (percussion) Rob Barron (keys), Bob Knight (drums), yous truly and featuring Helena-May on vocals.

[Gary Mullins, Stefan Redtenbacher, Helena-May, Eran Kendler. Photo courtesy of Marcus Valance]

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