When three of the best jazz musicians of their generation get in the studio to record an album of some of their favourite tunes you know the outcome is going to be something pretty special. For their second album on Jellymould, British jazz heavyweights Stan Sulzmann and Nikki Iles are joined by a very special guest - their friend and legendary double bass player Dave Holland.
It is over 20 years since Stan Sulzmann and Nikki Iles recorded their first album together. Since then these two outstanding musicians have become stalwarts of the British jazz scene. They have composed original, critically acclaimed music for various ensembles both live and on record and played with some of the biggest names in the jazz world including John Taylor, Kenny Wheeler, Vince Mendoza and Anthony Braxton.
Double bass legend Dave Holland needs no introduction. Plucked from the house band at Ronnie’s to join Miles Davis’ band at the tender age of 22 he has an international career leading his own all-star bands and working with a who’s who of artists including Thelonious Monk, Stan Getz and Joe Henderson. The nine tracks on ‘Lush Life’ are a beautiful collection of unusual “standards” and four originals, two each from Stan and Nikki, who have contributed short liner notes to the tunes explaining why they were included on the album. From the opening track “You Don’t Know What Love Is” - included because of Stan’s love of Billie Holiday’s rendition - to “Between Moons” by John Taylor, an influential friend to all the artists on the record, to the final title track “Lush Life” you can hear in the recording how much these three stellar musicians enjoy making music.
