Dave Holland Performs with Kevin Eubanks in Healdsburg Jazz Festival

The final evening of jazz for the Healdsburg Jazz Festival ended on a high note.  It was held at the new Jackson Theater last evening.  The first half of the program was a free style performance with legendary jazz bass player and composer Dave Holland and Kevin Eubanks on electric guitar.  Holland said he and Eubanks were "...going to play free style and take us on a journey."  For the next hour the jazz artists riffed on their instruments.  Their technical techniques were on display.  Sadly, the showmanship did not compensate for a cacophonous, atonal and arrhythmic sound.  It wasn't until the last 15 minutes that Holland and Eubanks connected with each other's playing in a way that aesthetically pleasing.  Holland's bass playing didn't entirely mesh with Eubanks playing.  Eubanks' sound was a pastiche of Hendricks and  B.B. King.  Holland's sound varied between classical and jazz.  His fingering were often below the neck on the body of the bass.  The deep tone of his double bass was not a match for Eubanks playing or vice versa.  It's interesting to watch great artists collaborate.  Still, I would have found it more enjoyable had they played a shorter improvisational set and set about sounding like a polished duet.  The parts fell short of a harmonious jazz performance that was bewildering and not bewitching.  After a break, Holland returned to the stage with pianist Kenny Barron and drummer, Obed Calvaire.  The program featured music of the trio's recent album, "Without Deception".  In March of 2020, the trio was in Paris where they had two performances when Covid shut everything down.  They were thrilled to be back together and performing live in Sonoma.  Pianist/composer Barron shared with us that his friend sent him a photo while he touring saying she was without makeup.  This lead him to name the single and album he was working on, "Without Deception."   Holland and Barron both composed on the album.  Calvaire received the lion share of solos to the delight of everyone.  Holland's bass playing underscored the drums and piano.  The relaxed tempo and energetic melodies flowed with a swing jazz sound mixed with Latin fusion.  Intricate keyboard melodies and upbeat tempo on percussion kept the music lively and richly layered.   Listening to the jazz trio allowed the listener to appreciate each of the instruments apart and as an ensemble.  Holland is a multi-Grammy winning bassist whose played and recorded with Miles Davis and Stan Getz.  He's lead his own jazz orchestra and big band.  Now in his mid-70s, Holland's style continues to evolve.  Without a doubt, I'm going to listen to "Without Deception" and attend another Dave Holland live performance.