Saturday, January 10, 2009

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase:
Three from Dave Holland



This week, we've got three videos featuring bassist Dave Holland, who will be performing at the Sheldon Concert Hall on Saturday, January 24. Holland first gained wide public notice as a member of Miles Davis' electric band in the late 1960s, and has gone on to have a prolific and diverse career collaborating with many major jazz musicians and leading his own critically acclaimed groups, ranging from a big band to various small ensembles.

The first clip up above features Holland's quintet performing "Free for All" at the Newport Jazz Festival, with Chris Potter on saxophone, Robin Eubanks on trombone, Steve Nelson on vibes and Billy Kilson on drums. Down below, there's a more recent version of the quintet, with drummer Nate Smith replacing Kilson, playing Potter's composition "Vicissitudes." The third clip is Holland playing a solo version of Charles Mingus' elegy for Lester Young, "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat."

Personnel changes notwithstanding, Holland's small groups have been consistently among the most interesting in jazz over the past decade, and it should be a real treat to hear the latest edition of the band in the relatively intimate setting of the Sheldon.



2 comments:

Tony Renner said...

ain't no better tune than "goodbye porkpie hat"

Dean Minderman said...

It's a favorite of mine, too, Tony. The album on which I first heard it, "Mingus Ah Um," was the record that really turned me on to Charles Mingus.

Although it's very different, I like Jeff Beck's version of the tune as well.