 Key influences on his direction included violinist Jean-Luc Ponty, Santana, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea and Frank Zappa.In the early 1980s, along with guitarist Richard Scarfe and percussionist / vibesman Mike Turtle, he founded acid jazz group Shinara, a five-piece combo with an unusual line-up and musically diverse style that was well received by audiences.On a visit to California to promote recordings made in his Bracknell studio, Kahan met and signed with Los Angeles based record producer and impresario Lee Magid, a music business veteran responsible for steering numerous artists to success including Lou Rawls, Della Reese and violinist Papa John Creach.