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.
First a saxophone player, Holdsworth didn't pick up the guitar
until he was 17 years old, but learned the instrument quickly.
After playing in local outfits (in addition to 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.
