Allan Holdsworth

Allan Holdsworth - None Too Soon - 1996 - Polydor

"Django Reinhardt, Charlie Christian, Jimmy Raney, Wes Montgomery in fact most of the great guitar players; I loved them all. The newer guys: John McLaughlin, Pat Metheny, John Scofield, Scott Henderson and Frank Gambale... They're all amazing with very different musical personalities. Of course there's Michael Brecker and Keith Jarrett, but they don't play the guitar (thank God!). I think I've been influenced by all instruments. I was influenced a lot by horn players, from Charlie Parker, Cannonball Adderly, John Coltrane on to Michael Brecker. There's many, many more that you could fill this whole page with people that have brought great gifts to the world of music." - Allan Holdsworth on his influences

Allan's ninth album is a collection of interpretations of jazz standards by John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Django Reinhardt, and Joe Henderson, along with an Irving Berlin tune, two compositions by the late Gordon Beck (the album's pianist, and Allan's close personal friend of many years), and an intriguing arrangement of The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood". Holdsworth fans are in for a special treat, as the musical settings provide an intriguing backdrop for some of his more adventurous soloing to date. The project's underlying agenda is revealed in his quote from the reissue liner notes: "... after I’d completed Hard Hat Area, Gordon was visiting again and he said, ‘Maybe you should do a record of tunes that people might be able to relate to.’ He had the impression that my music mostly sailed past people, and he thought that maybe if I played something recognizable, they might be able to appreciate what was going on.”Voted "Album of the Year" in 1997 by Audiophile Imports, None Too Soon is a modern jazz classic and remains unique among Allan Holdsworth’s many recordings. It also has the noted distinction of being the only Holdsworth album to date to feature the renowned Tribal Tech battery of bassist Gary Willis and drummer Kirk Covington. Presented in digipak format, with fresh liner notes scribed by MJR artist and Guitar Player Magazine editor, Barry Cleveland. © http://www.moonjune.com/catalog/043_ALLAN-HOLDSWORTH_None-Too-Soon_MJR043/

The brilliant guitarist, Allan Holdsworth was a member of the great Canterbury progressive jazz rock bands Soft Machine and Gong. He has also played with greats like Ian Carr's Nucleus, Tony William's Lifetime, UK, Jean Luc Ponty, Bill Bruford, and Level 42. He has influenced countless others, including musicians like Frank Zappa, Eddie Van Halen, Yngwie Malmsteen, Alex Lifeson and Steve Vai. But as as a solo artist he has also recorded some incredible albums like "Metal Fatigue" and "With a Heart in My Song". "None Too Soon" is a collection of jazz standards by legends like Irving Berlin, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Django Reinhardt, and Joe Henderson. The album also includes an arrangement of Lennon and McCartney’s “Norwegian Wood”, and two compositions by Keyboardist Gordon Beck. Allan didn’t change his guitar style or make any compromises when covering these tracks. Allan said “Gordon (Beck) chose most of the tunes, which I hadn’t grown up playing, so when he would teach me one, it would be just like I was learning a piece of original music. I made my own charts, and my approach to playing the songs was exactly the same as on my previous albums.” [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 113 Mb]

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1. Countdown - John Coltrane (3:09)
2. Nuages - Django Reinhardt (5:40)
3. How Deep is the Ocean - Irving Berlin (5:29)
4. Isotope - Joe Henderson (5:41)
5. None Too Soon Pt. I / Interlude / None Too Soon Pt. II - Gordon Beck (7:42)
6. Norwegian Wood - Lennon & McCartney (5:55)
7. Very Early - Bill Evans (7:40)
8. San Marcos - Gordon Beck (3:22)
9. Inner Urge - Joe Henderson (6:15)

MUSICIANS

Allan Holdsworth - Guitar, Synthaxe
Gary Willis - Bass
Gordon Beck - Digital Piano
Kirk Covington - Drums

BIO

Guitarist Allan Holdsworth is widely considered to be one of the finest instrumentalists in all of jazz fusion, yet has never truly received the recognition that he so rightfully deserves. Born on August 6, 1946, in Bradford, Yorkshire, Holdsworth was originally taught music by his father, who was a pianist. Holdsworth didn't pick up the guitar until he was 17 years old, but learned the instrument quickly. After playing in local outfits (and learning the violin), Holdsworth relocated to London, where he was taken under the wing of saxophonist Ray Warleigh. By 1972, Holdsworth had joined progressive rockers Tempest, appearing on the group's self-titled debut a year later before joining Soft Machine in December 1973 -- and radically changing the latter outfit's sound to guitar-based fusion in the process. U.S. drummer Tony Williams discovered Holdsworth around this time, which led to an invite for the up-and-coming guitarist to replace John McLaughlin in Williams' Lifetime project -- Holdsworth abruptly left Soft Machine in March of 1975, subsequently appearing on the Williams recordings Believe It and Million Dollar Legs. But Holdsworth's union with Williams was a brief one, as the guitarist joined up with French-English prog rockers Gong for such albums as 1976's Gazeuse! (released as Expresso in the U.S.) and 1978's Expresso II, in addition to guesting on recordings by Jean-Luc Ponty, Bill Bruford, Gordon Beck, Jack Bruce, and UK. Also in the late '70s, Holdsworth launched a solo career, which over the years has seen the release of nearly 20 albums (a few standouts include 1983's Road Games, 1985's Metal Fatigue, 1994's Hard Hat Area, and 2000's The Sixteen Men of Tain), as the guitarist has been joined by such acclaimed musicians as Paul Williams (a former bandmate of Holdsworth's in Tempest), Gary Husband, Chad Wackerman, Gary Husband, Jimmy Johnson, Steve Hunt, and Alan Pasqua, among others. In the mid-'80s, Holdsworth was one of the first musicians to use a Synthaxe, a guitar that contained a breath controller that proved to be a cross between a synthesizer, guitar, and saxophone (Holdsworth was awarded Best Guitar Synthesist from 1989 through 1994 in the readers' poll of Guitar Player magazine). In the '90s, Holdsworth also created his own signature guitar model with the Carvin company. In the mid-'90s, Holdsworth briefly shifted away from his fusion originals and recorded an album with longtime musical partner Gordon Beck that dipped into jazz standards. The Sixteen Men of Tain (2000) marked another shift, in that it was the first Holdsworth release to feature an all-acoustic rhythm section. This was followed in 2002 by All Night Wrong, his first official live release. Then! Live in Tokyo was next, featuring Holdsworth's 1990 live band, which was followed by Against the Clock, a career retrospective, in 2005. © Greg Prato © 2012 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/artist/allan-holdsworth-p6754/biography