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It is too early to denominate bassist
Dave Holland
an "elder statesman" of jazz. Indeed, given his career aside Miles Davis in the iconoclastic early electric jazz era, it will be hard to ever think of him in those terms. But Holland is among the most distinguished personae on his instrument, as a performer and as a composer, arranger and band leader.
With such credentials, and with the top caliber sidemen he has latched onto in recent years—trombonist Robin Eubanks, reedman Chris Potter, and vibist Steve Nelson—the expectation and the output of any recording are guaranteed to be first class jazz. And such is largely the case with Not for Nothin'. Here, the soloing is exemplary; the interplay of the musicians, particularly the two horns, is impeccable and inspired; and the energy consistently high. And, on pieces such as "What Goes Around," the music swirls through a variety of structures and tempos to captivate the listener.
So why the qualifier largely? Holland and company ground themselves in variants of hard bop, even as the soloists push the envelope. There is an intention to be accessible, as in the use of simple bop head arrangements and further exemplified on "Shifting Sands," a cross between a madrigal and a mid-eastern mood not unlike a Yusef Latif exotic motif, and that ultimately proves slightly constricting. A small criticism, one avoided across much of the CD, but a tangible one. Nonetheless, this CD is head over shoulders above the crowd, and deserves listening.
— Jules Epstein, November 2001
Release Date: 21 August 2001
Not For Nothin' (ECM)
Personnel:
Robin Eubanks: trombone / Chris Potter: reeds / Steve Nelson: vibes / Dave Holland: bass / Billy Kilson: drums
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last update 29 November 2001