Dave Holland

Amid endless choices, the sound of a Dave Holland bassline compels attention. A master of tone and rhythm, thebassist, composer, and bandleader is now in his fifthdecade as a performer and his music possesses a rich andkaleidoscopic history. One of Holland's mentors, the affablysage-like saxophonist Sam Rivers, gave him a tip once."Sam said, ‘Don't leave anything out?"play all of it,' " Hollandonce told a radio interviewer. "That's become almost amantra for me over the years," he says, "as I've tried to finda way to build a vehicle which lets me utilize the full spectrumwhich includes the tradition, playing the blues andimprovising freely. I love all that music, and there's been adesire to reconcile all those areas, to make them relevant,hopefully, in a contemporary context, as one music."

Holland is not the only accomplished bassist in music, aninstrument rich in authoritative figures like Charles Mingusand Scott LaFaro. But he's the only Dave Holland, and thevivid personal imprint he brings to the music performsstamps it with a sound that transcends any arbitrarydescriptions of genre or format. He is a seminal figure inpost-1960s jazz, but has never allowed his work to belimited by tradition.

This path has led him from the frontiers of freeimprovisation to his modern ensembles that fully embodyRivers' philosophy of "playing all of it."

Born in 1946, the Wolverhampton, England, native was asteady figure on the London jazz scene when Miles Davissaw him at the fabled Soho jazz club Ronnie Scott's in1968,playing in a combo that opened for the Bill Evans Trio."Miles heard something in his sound and his ideas," recalledJack DeJohnette, who was Evans's drummer on the date. Amonth later, Holland was on the bandstand with Davis atCount Basie's Harlem nightclub. He then joined the rhythmsection on Filles de Kilimanjaro, and the revolutionary In aSilent Way and Bitches Brew sessions. It was a heady twoyears, but Holland was quickly developing his own ideasabout music.

He recalls that one of his earliest and hardest lessons washow to make his own space in Davis' music, which at thetime was electronically evolving. "When I first joined Miles'band, he didn't say much to me. I now know that to be one ofhis great gifts to artists: to encourage us to not play like theguys who came before us, but to explore our own creativesolutions. At the time I remember reading a quote from theSufi tradition that said, 'Plant your banner firmly in the desertsand.' That resonated with me. I knew I had to figure outwhat I could bring to the table to represent how I heard andfelt the music."

Eager to pursue his own radical new sounds, Holland didwhat many of his peers would not have contemplated. Hequit Davis' band, giving up the arena gigs at vast venues likeMadison Square Garden to commit to the creation of hisown music. And then he got even busier. The 1970s foundHolland prolific. Solo, and in collaboration, he became adominant voice in the new music. Along with fellow Milesalum Chick Corea, he formed the shortlived supergroupCircle, and then joined Rivers for the epochal Conferenceof the Birds. The 1972 album, one of Holland's first for theECM label, was a quartet session that also featured multi-reedist Anthony Braxton and drummer Barry Altschul (bothof Circle). Inspired by the birds that frequented the yard ofHolland's London home, and a 12th century Persian epicwritten by Farid ud-Din Attar, the album became a classic:outward-thinking music that made the avant-garde swingingand coherent, suffused in feeling yet attentive to form.Holland also explored the essence of his instrument in theduo record with Barre Phillips, Music for Two Basses(1971) and the remarkable solo album Emerald Tears(1977).

Interestingly enough, Holland's solo albums—which alsoinclude the cello-driven Life Cycle (1983) and One's All (a1993 release on the German Intuition label)—brought himback full circle to his earliest fascination with the bass andstrings. "I loved the richness of the sound and theinstrument's expressiveness," he says, recalling hisexposure as teenager to albums featuring Ray Brown andLeroy Vinnegar. "But what really knocked me out—and is stillthe key to playing this music—is the communicative quality ofthose players. The idea of the communion of playing struckme deeply. How they complemented each other during solosand how they interacted. This was so far ahead of anything Ihad heard up to that point. I saw a much wider horizonahead to reach for. The emotion of jazz moved me. Itknocked me off my feet"

DeJohnette marvels at his musicianship in this setting:"Dave is one of a few bassists who can get an audience ontheir feet during a solo. He learned from Miles to have apoint of view in his playing." Singling out Bach's sonatas,Holland says that he's carrying on a stringed instrumenttradition: "On my solo recordings and in my solo concerts, Itry to find a variety of ways to play the bass so the musicisn't boring and repetitive. There are different ways ofpacing, and, of course, you can turn on a dime when you'replaying by yourself."

It was Holland's strengths as a collaborator that markedmany of his most notable efforts of the decade. His ongoingassociation with Rivers, Braxton and trumpeter KennyWheeler saw Holland's presence on a slew of importantsessions, including a pair of improvisatory duets with Riversand multiple credits on Braxton's Arista recordings, such asthe splendid New York (Fall 1974). Joining forces withDeJohnette again and guitarist John Abercrombie, Hollandjoined the collective Gateway trio from 1975-77 recording apair of albums for ECM. (The trio recorded twice again inthe 1990s and continues to play the occasional concert).

Ever versatile, Holland also recorded with folk and rockmusicians. As the only acoustic bassist living in Woodstock,NY, at the time, the Englishman was in demand. MichaelCuscuna, who produced several Braxton sessions withHolland on board, solicted his talents for Bonnie Raitt's GiveIt Up. Holland also got in the studio with bluegrass legendVassar Clements and John Hartford. (It was in the samespirit that Holland found himself jamming with Jimi Hendrixone fleeting night in 1969 with drummer Buddy Miles).

Holland formed his first working quintet in 1983, featuringalto saxophonist Steve Coleman, trumpeter Wheeler andtrombonist Julian Priester. A series of albums recordedover the next four years—including Jumpin' In, Seeds ofTime, and Razor's Edge—laid the foundation for Holland'ssongbook.

Subsequently, he formed the Dave Holland Trio (withColeman and DeJohnette) for the 1988 album Triplicate,and teamed with Coleman, electric guitarist Kevin Eubanksand drummer Marvin "Smitty" Smith for Extensions in 1989.

The bassist also continued to enjoy strong collaborationswith a vast range of his peers, often connecting withcelebrated figures from the previous generation of jazzicons. The following year, Holland got together in a uniquetrio of jazz legends, drummer Billy Higgins and pianist HankJones to record The Oracle—a genuine power summit.Other stellar projects included Question & Answer with PatMetheny & Roy Haynes as well as Like Minds with GaryBurton. This has been a consistent pattern in Holland'scareer. During the ‘90s, he renewed an affiliation, begun inthe 1970s, with Joe Henderson, joining the tenorsaxophonist on So Near (So Far), Porgy & Bess, and theJoe Henderson Big Band. Likewise, Holland reunited withvocalist Betty Carter, touring and recording the live albumFeed the Fire. Fellow Davis album Herbie Hancock invitedHolland to tour with him in 1992, subsequently recording TheNew Standard, Holland joined Hancock's band again in1996 and, more recently, was part of the sessions forRiver: The Joni Letters, winner of the 2008 Grammy forAlbum of the Year.

Throughout the '90s into the new century, Holland movedfrom strength to strength, both building and consolidating hisposition as one of the music's important and creativelyseeking bandleaders. He launched his third quartet—andreleased Dream of the Elders (1995), which introduced thevibraphonist Steve Nelson to his ensembles. The Pittsburghnative has been a mainstay in all of Holland's bands, savefor his sextet, since the mid-‘90s. "He's one of the greatimprovisers I've had a chance to play with," Holland says."He brings something new to the table every time. I seeguys scratching their heads at what he's doing. I wanted achordal instrument in the group. I didn't necessarily want apiano. I wanted something to give more openness to themusic, chordally. Steve's approach to playing can be veryspacious at times. He knows when to lay out and when toplay. There are often long stretches where he's not playingand then he comes in just at the right moment. A lot ofpeople ask me why I'm using vibes. The reason is SteveNelson."

Holland also formed his current quintet, which includes tenorsaxophonist Chris Potter, trombonist Robin Eubanks and, amore recent addition, drummer Nate Smith. Among theirnotable recordings are Not for Nothin, Prime Directive andExtended Play.

Eubanks, who has been in Holland's ensembles since themid-1980s, brings an expansive range to the band. "He canget a very pure French horn-like sound on the high registerand can go from that to a real gutbucket sound, and all thepoints in between," Holland says. "It's really important to methat the musicians are deeply grounded in the tradition ofthe music but at the same time are looking to move thatforward. Not only in their playing but in their composing aswell."

Holland first heard Potter when the award-winning tenorsaxophonist was about 19, and playing alto with RedRodney at the Blue Note. "I was doing a gig there with JoeHenderson," Holland recalls. Later, he joined Potter on arecording session with DeJohnette and John Scofield. "Iwas struck by the composure he had for a young musicianand his sense of balance. He played with a great deal ofassurance." Potter also knew Eubanks from their stints inthe Mingus Big Band, which already made for greatchemistry in the horn section.

Drummer Nate Smith was also quite young when Hollandfirst encountered him, during a visit to the University ofVirginia in Richmond, Va., where Smith was a student. Afteranother encounter at a memorial concert for Betty Carter,with whom Smith performed in the voclalist's last years,Holland invited him to join the quintet in 2003. "He's got agreat warmth to his playing, a great sense of community,"Holland says. "I always need players who can really get intoa dialogue with each other in the music and are reallylistenjng to each other and are not up there playing forthemselves. And, again, he's another fine composer in theband. Because of his generation, he brings a particularperspective to the music, as does Chris, which I reallyappreciate and enjoy.

When Holland talks about the musicians, it's clear that he'sfound an ideal mix of talents and attitudes with which todevelop a full, complex and exciting sound that is, above all,of the moment. "We're all looking to play music that isrelevant to the time we live in," he says. "In the quintet we'reinterested in a wide range of context for the music to workin. I'm not looking for a book of music that is only followingone direction. I'm lookikng for something that covers a verybroad range of approaches to improvisation, a balancebetween composition and improvisaton, and differentcompositional settings that have different influences on theperformance."

Holland has only gathered momentum with the new century.In 2000, he debuted his Big Band and its debut What GoesAround. "As a player, I like the situation where you point mein a direction, and let me give a piece momentum," saysHolland. "That's my aim, giving everyone in the big band theopportunity to delve into their own creative possibilities.There's a fine line for balance?"utilizing the band for mycomposing and arranging, but also keeping the flexibility andfreedom in the music."

Potter, an MVP in multiple settings for Holland, says theleader's "core" bass lines allow him to launch his saxophoneimprovisations in many different directions. "As a leader,Dave approaches the band as something you wind up andlet go," he says. "Of course, he's serious about the music.He wants us all to play at our highest level. He's verycurious to see how far we can take an idea and run with it."

In 2005, Holland formed Dare2 Records, after a 34-yearrelationship with ECM Records, the label where he becamea signature artist. Originally, Holland created Dare2Records as an imprint "to have more control over the entireprocess of releasing an album," he says. "But in the longterm, there's a lot of promise in making music this way,especially with the changing environment in the recordingindustry." Sharing the bandstand with the best of a youngergeneration of players in his fan-favorite quintet, he now hasthree albums out on Dare2: the Grammy-award winningOvertime (2005), Critical Mass (2006) and Pass It On(2008). The debut recording from the Dave Holland Octet,entitled Pathways, will be released in the fall of 2009 onDare2 also. As he has in his music, Holland has embracedchange and new ideas in business like few of his generationor younger.