Jamie Cullum

A master showman and a commanding jazz artist, Jamie Cullum leaves no doubt about jazz’s ability to reach the widest audience. Moving effortlessly from television studios and stadiums to concert halls and night clubs, the pianist, vocalist, and live-wire bandleader is the UK’s best-selling jazz artist of all time. He makes his SFJAZZ debut in our 40th Anniversary year with this special night of music.

Since the release of his self-produced 1999 debut album Heard It All Before, a standards session he recorded for under £480 while still a teenager, Cullum has become a cultural force by gleefully bringing jazz’s improvisational ethos onto stages with rock, pop and funk stars. His sonic arsenal includes expert beatboxing skills, a looper to create real-time rhythm tracks, and a wooden stomp box to amplify his beat-defining footwork, all tools that add to his music’s relentless propulsion. But it’s his bravura piano work and his pile-driving left hand that drive Cullum’s locomotive combo.