Dave Holland: Freedom Call
Edition Records

Timed to coincide with his eightieth birthday, Freedom Call is the first box set of Dave Holland's career, something that's a little bit hard to believe considering the immense ground the illustrious artist has covered during fifty-plus years. Holland's profile grew exponentially when he joined Miles Davis's late ‘60s outfit (also featuring Chick Corea and Jack DeJohnette), but his greatest mark has been as the leader of his own ensembles, three of which appear on this encompassing set. Available in digital, triple-CD, and six-LP formats, Freedom Call presents in separate parts previously unreleased live recordings by Holland's Quintet, Sextet, and Prism outfits, each band representing a distinct period in his career. The collection invites the listener to reflect on the remarkable music Holland's produced and the impact he's had on its development and the musicians who've partnered with him. There's a lot to absorb—each third totals about seventy-five minutes—but the music's never less than compelling.

Adding to the release's value, Holland contributed liner notes that provide historical background for each of the ensembles. Making this an even purer document by the artist, all of the compositions are his—no covers of “Stella By Starlight” or “All Blues” in sight—on this Holland-produced collection. We move from the Sextet line-up of alto saxist Antonio Hart, trumpeter/flugelhornist Alex Sipiagin, trombonist Robin Eubanks, pianist Mulgrew Miller, and drummer Eric Harland to the Quintet—Eubanks again, now with Chris Potter (soprano and tenor saxophones), Steve Nelson (vibraphone, marimba), and Nate Smith (drums)—and finally Prism, Robin's sibling Kevin on guitar, Craig Taborn on piano, and Harland again in the drum chair.

As Holland clarifies, the Sextet first performed in 2006, issued the album Pass It On in 2008, and then toured in the US and Europe, the music on Freedom Call culled from live performances of that time. Formed in 1997, the Quintet toured extensively until 2010, its performances on the box set coming from that year. Prism formed in 2012 and issued its self-titled album a year later, after which the band toured, the material on Freedom Call stemming from its 2014 performances.

Unity is an apt title for the Sextet third, the band tight and swinging as it powers through seven tracks. What a pleasure it is to hear this band in action: Holland's his always unerring self, Harland's a force of nature, the horn and woodwind players are never less than arresting, and holding it all together is the titanic Miller, to whose memory the album's dedicated. Delivered at a particularly astonishing clip is “Fast Track,” which shows precisely how connected this unit was and how effortlessly it could evoke the scope of a big band. Not everything's executed dizzyingly, with “Lazy Snake” and “Mr B” showing the band's capacity for bluesy sultriness, florid solos from Sipiagin and Hart elevating the former and Mulgrew ear-catching on the latter. Of course the leader steps forward with an occasional punchy statement too, during the lightly swinging “Step to It” and breezily funky “Sum of All Parts,” to cite two examples.

Apt too is the Synergism title Holland chose for the Quintet album. All of the band members were ones with whom he'd previously worked (the initial iteration of the group included saxophonist Steve Wilson and drummer Billy Kilson, their spots gradually taken by Potter and Smith), so the performances were already primed for strong interplay. As mentioned, Robin Eubanks was in both the Sextet and Quintet, but with Nelson, Potter, and Smith involved a radical change in identity occurred. Locking in with the leader, Smith's crisp grooves tickle the ear throughout, while Nelson's vibes make for a pleasing complement to the saxophone and trombone front-liners. “Full Circle” begins smoothly enough, but an abrupt shift four minutes in sees Holland and Smith laying down a thunderous funk pulse that sounds like something lifted from an On the Corner out-take. Look no further than the relentlessly swinging “The Eyes Have It” for a splendid sampling of the band's tight rapport (Potter's fleet-fingered acrobatics too).

The electric side of Holland's music is accounted for by Prism's Freedom. It's not fusion, but it is more scalding when Eubanks is present. Holland first met him in 1988 and immediately felt a deep connection; eventually Holland invited the guitarist to join him, saxophonist Steve Coleman, and drummer Marvin “Smitty” Smith in the quartet that would record the terrific Extensions in 1989. While compositional guidelines are in place, the five pieces allow for advanced degrees of flexibility and freedom that all four embrace enthusiastically. Quick on his feet, Taborn adds acoustic and electric colour that neatly complements Eubanks's snarl and Harland's invention. Holland's as rock-solid in this context as he is in the acoustic ones. With only four players involved, the music at times feels looser and its ebb-and-flow more easily accommodated. Watch for the muscular thrust with which the drummer and bassist animate “Choir” and pave the way for a super-charged turn by the pianist. Offsetting the harder-edged “Confirmation Bias” and cataclysmic “Evolution” is the slow slink of “The Empty Chair” (which, admittedly, does eventually build to an inferno).

September 2026