Major Holley
Major Quincy Jr. Holley , also Mule Holley (born July 10, 1924 in Detroit , Michigan , † October 25, 1990 in Maplewood , New Jersey ), was an American jazz bassist .
Live and act
Holley's first instruments were the violin and tuba ; During his military service in the US Navy , he switched to the double bass. After military service, he performed with musicians such as Dexter Gordon , Wardell Gray , Charlie Parker , Art Tatum and Ella Fitzgerald . He made his first recordings in 1950 as a duo with Oscar Peterson (which were never re-released) and briefly became a member of the Peterson Trio alongside Charlie Smith .
In 1951 he moved to London . Between 1954 and 1956 he worked as a studio musician for the BBC and was a member of the BBC Orchestra before joining Woody Herman's band on a tour of South America in 1958 . After returning to the USA in 1959 he joined the quintet of Al Cohn and Zoot Sims . In the 1960s he worked again as a studio musician and performed with the Kenny Burrell Trio , Coleman Hawkins ( Today and Now , 1962), Roy Eldridge , Quincy Jones and Duke Ellington (1964). Between 1967 and 1970 he taught at Berklee College of Music in Boston.
He subsequently toured Europe with Helen Humes and the Kings of Jazz , recorded with Lee Konitz (1975), Roland Hanna (1979), Slam Stewart (1981), Michel Legrand , Milt Buckner and Jay McShann and performed at various European jazz festivals on. As a bassist, Holley was known to accompany his solo play (with the bow) by simultaneous unison hums, which he said he took over from Slam Stewart; but he did not switch to the octave .
Discographic notes
- Mule with Gérard Badini , Ed Thigpen , Gerry Wiggins , 1974
- Excuse Me, Ludwig with Oliver Jackson , Gerry Wiggins, 1977
- Slam Stewart & Major Holley Shut Yo 'Mouth! (rec. 1981, with Dick Hyman , Oliver Jones) 1991
- Major Step with Han Bennink , Rein de Graaff , Joe van Enkhuizen , (rec. 1990) 2000
literature
- Ian Carr , Digby Fairweather , Brian Priestley : Rough Guide Jazz. The ultimate guide to jazz. 1800 bands and artists from the beginning until today. 2nd, expanded and updated edition. Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 2004, ISBN 3-476-01892-X .
- Richard Cook , Brian Morton : The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings . 8th edition. Penguin, London 2006, ISBN 0-14-102327-9 .
- Leonard Feather , Ira Gitler : The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press, New York 1999, ISBN 0-19-532000-X .
- Martin Kunzler : Jazz Lexicon. Volume 1: A – L (= rororo-Sachbuch. Vol. 16512). 2nd Edition. Rowohlt, Reinbek near Hamburg 2004, ISBN 3-499-16512-0 .
Web links
- Major Holley at Allmusic (English)
personal data | |
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SURNAME | Holley, major |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Holley, Mule |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American jazz bassist |
DATE OF BIRTH | July 10, 1924 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Detroit , Michigan , USA |
DATE OF DEATH | October 25, 1990 |
Place of death | Maplewood , New Jersey , USA |