Photo by Howard Gitelson
"This is post modern poetic singing at its finest. Who said jazz is a dead art form? The Dave Holland Quintet is carrying the banner of creative music in the jazz tradition in the 21^st century." (Thom Jurek, All Music Guide to Jazz)

If acoustic bass players one day find themselves in the limelight of jazz, they will have to thank artists such as Oscar Pettiford, Charles Mingus, Ray Brown, and Dave Holland. Pettiford has been gone too long for most of us to remember his contributions; many contemporary jazz listeners have only heard Mingus on record although his influence hangs on the notes of every living post bop bassist. Ray Brown's artistry is a more recent memory and certainly his legacy thrives on many levels today. And that leaves quite a mantle of responsibility on the shoulders of Dave Holland and his big box contemporaries, including Charlie Haden, Ron Carter and Buster Williams. Holland is clearly up to the task, having swept the 2004 Down Beat critic's poll for Jazz Artist, Jazz Album (ECM, Extended Play--Live at Birdland), Acoustic Group (Quintet), and Acoustic Bassist of the Year--duplicating his achievement of 2002 (he "only" won in Acoustic Bass and Big Band categories in 2003). And this week, from the Dakota (in Minneapolis, October 18-19) to Birdland (NYC, October 20-23), jazz audiences will enjoy a slice of Holland's multi-faceted talents in the brilliant format of his award-winning quintet.

A native of Wolverhampton, England, Dave Holland is a largely self-taught musician. He picked up the ukelele at age 4, then guitar at 10 and moved on to the bass guitar and local bands at 13. Two years after quitting school to become a professional musician, a 17-year-old Holland read about Ray Brown in Down Beat and picked up recordings by Brown and Leroy Vinnegar. Within a week he traded in his bass guitar for the upright double bass, and was soon sitting in at local jazz clubs. Studying in London with a full scholarship to the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Holland became an active bassist in the London jazz community. By 1966, he was playing with John Surman, John McLaughlin, Evan Parker, Kenny Wheeler, and other London-based musicians. Inspired by Charles Mingus, Scott LaFaro, Jimmy Garrison, Ron Carter, and Gary Peacock, but especially Ray Brown, Holland played at Ronnie Scott's and toured with Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, and Joe Henderson. A gig with Bill Evans in 1968 attracted the attention of Miles Davis. Soon Holland was in New York touring and recording with Davis, including participating in the In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew sessions.

Through the 1970s, Holland worked with such diverse musicians as Chick Corea and the group Circle, Stan Getz, Thelonius Monk, and Betty Carter; he was a charter member of the long-lived Gateway trio with John Abercrombie and Jack DeJohnette. One of his most consistent collaborators during the 1970s and early 80s was Sam Rivers. In 1977 he recorded Emerald Tears, a solo album of bass music, and began performing solo concerts. His first recording as a group leader, the widely acclaimed Conference of the Birds, was released in 1972, but it was another decade before developing his own band became a high priority. His first quintet (Life Cycle) included Kenny Wheeler, Steve Coleman, Steve Ellington, and Julian Priester, with Robin Eubanks and Marvin "Smitty" Smith joining him later. After the group disbanded, Holland worked in trio formats (recording Triplicate with DeJohnette and Coleman) and recorded with Hank Jones and Billy Higgins. Leading a quartet with Coleman, Smith, and Kevin Eubanks, Holland's album Extensions won the 1989 Down Beat poll as Album of the Year. In the 1990s, Holland toured with Jack DeJohnette, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Roy Haynes, Joe Henderson, Michael Brecker, Geri Allen, and Betty Carter, appearing on several Grammy-winning or nominated recordings. He also continued touring with Gateway and with a new quartet.