Lloyd Ryan's Jazz Force was formed in early 2015 by Lloyd Ryan.

Please find a brief biography of each member below:

Drums - Lloyd Ryan

Lloyd Ryan, born in London, has been described as "a specialist in the big band style of drumming". He is best known for his work as a session musician and for having taught Phil Collins, one of the world's most famous drummers and best-selling music artists. Collins has credited Ryan with teaching him the drum rudiments.

Active since the 1960s, he has worked with Tony Christie, Matt Monro, Brotherhood of Man, The New Seekers, Tommy Cooper Bobby Davro, Gene Vincent and P.J. Proby. Ryan has also led his own big band since the 1980s and released his first big band album in 2012.

In addition to Collins, other students who have become successful professional drummers include John Coghlan (Status Quo),  Keef Hartley, (Keef Hartley band) Derrick McKenzie (Jamiroquai), Nick Simms (Cornershop), Graham Broad (Roger Waters, Tina Turner, The Beach Boys, Jeff Beck, Van Morrison, Bryan Adams and Bill Wyman) and Ralph Salmins ( Paul McCartney, Lulu,  Elton John, Madonna, James Brown, Tom Jones, Quincy Jones, Diana Ross, Sheryl Crow, Alanis Morissette, Paloma Faith, The Bee Gees, Elvis Costello, Jeff Beck, Alice Cooper and Michael Bublé)

If you would like drum lessons from Lloyd - check out his teaching website here:

http://www.lloydryanthecompletedrumteacher.com/



Saxophone - Vasilis Xenopoulos

Saxophonist Vasilis Xenopoulos was born in Athens and started playing clarinet and piano at 9 years of age. He started on the saxophone at 13, and continued his music studies at the Philippos Nakas Conservatory in Athens. He showed great potential from the very early stages of his student years and gained a great deal of experience by playing with some of the top names in the Greek jazz scene.
In 1999 Vasilis was awarded a jazz scholarship to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston MA. There he studied under Billy Pierce, George Garzone and Andy McGhee.

In the same year he represented Greece in the European Jazz Youth Orchestra and toured with them in many European countries.

By 2002 Vasilis had moved to London and continued his studies under the guidance of Eddie Harvey, Stan Sulzmann, Jimmy Hastings and Pete Cook.


Vasilis formed his first Quartet in 2005 and gradually established himself as one of London’s up and coming jazz saxophonists. As a jazz musician he has worked with some of the best musicians in the British jazz scene, such as Jim Mullen, Steve Waterman, Alan Barnes, Derek Nash, Bruce Adams, Martin Shaw, Nigel Price, Ray Gelato and many others. On an international level, he has appeared with a variety of top performers such as sensational pianists Hiromi, and Jason Lindner.


In 2009 he formed his current ensemble “The Xtet" and their debut album “Loud City" containing 8 original compositions was released on 33Jazz Records in 2011 to much critical acclaim.


Vasilis has appeared in many guises, as guest soloist, as band leader or as saxophone section leader in jazz venues and jazz festivals throughout the UK. He is currently lead tenor in the Steve Taylor Big Band, and in the Ealing based Sound of 17 Big Band.


His explosive style means he is in great demand as a saxophone player for popular music and as a session musician.



Bass - Rob Statham


Rob is a professional bass player, writer, arranger, and educator of over twenty five years standing with extensive experience which includes appearing on many albums and broadcasts, and appearances at many prestigious venues throughout the UK, Europe, and beyond.

Starting on the violin at a young age, Rob switched to bass guitar in his teens, and studied at the Guildhall School of Music before commencing his professional career, since when he has been in demand in many diverse musical areas, from jazz and blues to pop and rock, and even appearing with the world renowned Halle Orchestra in 2007 under the baton of Sir Mark Elder. He has played and recorded with jazz artists such as John Etheridge and Ian Carr, soul and blues singers and musicians like Ruby Turner, Dick Heckstall-Smith, and Mojo Buford, rock legends such as Keith Emerson, and has also performed with violin virtuoso Nigel Kennedy, renowned jazz singers Ian Shaw and Julie Dexter, and acclaimed ex-Miles Davis guitarist Mike Stern amongst others.

A member of the Performing Rights Society, Rob has had his own compositions recorded and broadcast by various artists, and in 2010 was featured on Radio 3 in a tribute to jazz artist Ian Carr, working with world renowned writer and arranger, Mike Gibbs. He is also an educator and teacher of many years standing, both in a private capacity and, since 2009, as a staff member at Tech Music School, an international music school based in West London. In 2014 he was appointed Deputy Head of the bass department. Rob also writes a monthly instructional column for Bass Guitar magazine.

Keyboard - Geoff Castle

Pianist and composer Geoff Castle has played with top names on the British jazz scene since 1970. He was born in North London in 1949. His father was a photographer, his mother a social worker. Both parents were musical and he started piano lessons at the age of 8. He joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra in 1967 with whom he toured nationally and visited France and Bulgaria. After leaving NYJO in 1970 he joined Graham Collier's septet which starred at the 1971 Montreux festival winning two prizes. Geoff has featured in both acoustic and electric jazz and he joined Ian Carr's Nucleus in 1974 playing electric piano and Moog. He played with this band for eight years and appeared on six albums and many European tours. The band played at the first Jazz Yatra in Bombay in 1977. His compositional credits with Nucleus are Rachel's Tune from Snakehips Etcetera,  Mysteries from In Flagrante Delicto and Solar Wind from Out of the Long Dark.

During the 1980s he recorded more original material with Strange Fruit and Paz. He was commissioned to compose a suite for Camden Jazz Week 1981 that featured on BBC radio and Channel 4 TV. In 1983 he visited New Zealand where he worked with tenor saxophonist Brian Smith and recorded "Southern Excursion" which was voted NZ jazz album of the year. He was musical director for the NZ film "Should I Be Good?" and played on several other soundtracks. On returning to England he composed the incidental music for BBC TV’s eight part "Nippon" series. Soundtracks he has played on include "The Man Who Fell to Earth", "The Return of the Jedi", and "Space 1999".

In 1995 Geoff was arranger and musical director for the South African percussionist Julian Bahula album "Wind of Change". Geoff Castle decided to invest in a home digital studio based on Tascam DA88 machines and Logic Audio on PC. In 1995 he launched his CD label Turret Records with an album featuring his 10 piece Expanded band. A live album by Latin Fusion group Paz "Dancing in the Park" followed this. The band's next album "Samba Samba" featured veteran vocalist and percussionist Frank Holder in a mix of songs and instrumentals written by Geoff Castle and Dick Crouch.

He has played regularly at Ronnie Scott's with the Stan Robinson Quartet and  accompanied visiting artists including US jazzmen George Coleman, Jimmy Giuffre, James Moody and Art Farmer. 

The Geoff Castle Trio appeared at the Edinburgh festival in 2006 receiving good reviews Currently Geoff is performing with folk fusion band Carmina