HOLLIS GENTRY, III: For The Record

Hollis Gentry, III

For The Record

© 2001 Gintree Music (790861101229)

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Eloquent artistry of legendary saxophonist Hollis Gentry, III within an acoustic, straight ahead jazz setting.

tracks

1 On Green Dolphin Street
2 Up Jumped Spring
3 Alone Together
4 Recordame
5 A Child Is Born
6 The Night Has a Thousand Eyes
7 I Want to Talk About You
8 Cherokee

notes

9/07/2006

SAD NEWS-- A TRUE LOSS. HOLLIS GENTRY III, MASTER SAXOPHONIST, DIES

Dear friends,

When one we love passes from us, such a void is created. It almost hurts. Sharing what we know of him best soothes the ache, filling the vacuum. Like holding a treasure and turning it over and over taking in the details of every surface. Yet, the many facets of supernova talent Hollis Gentry III could never be known, because he was SO MUCH! The one wish I would have for this amazing man who –with his music--brought such unique joy to so many—is this: that he could know how many many people loved him. Loved not only his artistry, but loved the man.

Along with George Varga’s article from the San Diego Union Trib below, I’ve included links to some of the features on line about Hollis’ passing, and if you would like to email a message about Hollis, we can arrange to forward them to the family. We can also post them here for all to see.

Public services for Hollis Gentry III will be at 1 p.m. Sept. 15 at Calvary Baptist Church, 719 Cesar Chavez Parkway, San Diego. A Sept. 14 event in his honor is also being planned, and the family hopes to establish a music scholarship in his honor.

I’m Georgi Streetman, a fellow musician, fan and long time friend to Hollis. In doing whatever was in my power to support this amazing talent, I also put up and manage this website for him, a simple and unobtrusive way to serve. We’ve been out of the brilliant cd “For The Record” for some time now, but if you like, we are happy to reserve a copy for you.

You will love what musician Phil Upchurch had to say about Hollis (scroll to bottom) in a review a few years ago: “What he has cannot really be learned or taught. It's a gift of the highest order from the universe. Music chose him."

And Hollis, thank you for all you gave us. We love you. You live on in our hearts and in your music.
Peace and blessings to all.

http://www.kfmb.com/features/larry_himmel/story.php?id=62366

http://www.jazz88online.org/index.php

Hollis Gentry III, 51; San Diego saxophone legend dies at 51
By George Varga
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
San Diego
September 7, 2006
The saxophones that were synonymous with Hollis Gentry III's name for more than 30 years are silent now, but the infectious melodies he created with them will continue to echo. Mr. Gentry, one of San Diego's most popular and charismatic jazz artists, died Tuesday at his home in Valencia Park. He was 51
Mr. Gentry's family did not disclose the cause of death but said it was unrelated to the career-ending injuries he suffered in a car accident in late 2004 that fractured his jaw and caused severe facial damage. He continued to compose after the accident.
“He couldn't play his instruments but he was still active, musically,” his daughter, Taura Gentry-Thomas, said. “The music would lift his spirits up. It was therapeutic for him.”
Mr. Gentry's sinewy saxophone playing had a similarly uplifting effect on his many fans in San Diego. His fellow musicians believe that had he relocated to New York or Los Angeles Mr. Gentry could have made a national impact, instead of remaining a local legend.
“He was a wonderful musician,” international jazz sax star James Moody said yesterday from his San Carlos home. “But for jazz musicians to thrive, you've got to work outside of San Diego.”
Those sentiments were seconded by bassist Nathan East, a close friend of Mr. Gentry since 1969, when they co-founded the funk band Power with Carl Evans Jr. and Skipper Ragsdale.
“Hollis was one of the greatest saxophone players that never got heard by the rest of the world,” said East, who has worked with Eric Clapton, Michael Jackson, Barbra Streisand and many other stars.
A native of Corpus Christi, Texas, Mr. Gentry moved to San Diego with his family in 1959, shortly before his fifth birthday. He began playing saxophone when he was in fourth grade and soon after graduating from Crawford High School became a protégé of jazz sax giant Cannonball Adderley. He was equally adept at playing bebop, Latin and other styles.
Mr. Gentry earned his master's degree in music at UC San Diego in 1980, and he and bassist East, a fellow UCSD grad, became the first musicians in the school's history to earn UCSD's Outstanding Alumnus Award, in 1991.
In the early 1980s Mr. Gentry co-founded the San Diego pop-jazz band Fattburger, although he left not long after its first album was released nationally. He went on to form his own band, Neon, and – with local trumpeter Bruce Cameron – performed a game-opening national anthem during the 1984 World Series at what was then Jack Murphy Stadium.
Mr. Gentry toured nationally and abroad with Grammy Award-winning pop-jazz guitarist Larry Carlton and as a member of keyboardist David Benoit's band, but remained based in San Diego. He went on to record two solo albums, including “For the Record,” a 2001 release that found him adding his distinctive touch on tenor and soprano sax to straight-ahead jazz classics by Thad Jones, Joe Henderson and other luminaries.
“When you play every night, the key is to challenge yourself, to challenge the musicians you play with and for them to challenge you,” Mr. Gentry said in a 1985 San Diego Union interview. “When I get bored, that's when I'll know it's time to move on to something else.”
Survivors include his mother, Theodora Gentry; sister, Veronica Gentry-West; daughter, Taura; son, Hollis Gentry IV, all of San Diego; sister, Brenda Gentry-Norton of Baton Rouge, La., and four grandchildren.
Public services for Mr. Gentry will be at 1 p.m. Sept. 15 at Calvary Baptist Church, 719 Cesar Chavez Parkway, San Diego. A Sept. 14 event in Mr. Gentry's honor is also being planned, and the family hopes to establish a music scholarship in his honor.
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Reviews: FOR THE RECORD
"Gentry's husky-voiced tenor is the instrument of choice for all but the two gentler, waltzlike tracks, where his lightfooted soprano comes to the fore. The solid, mainstream rhythm section of pianist Bob Weller, drummer Tim McMahon and bassist Chris Conner helps engender a first-class, no-nonsense ambiance that's modified successfully on occasion by omission of the piano. Special notice must be given to bassist Conner, whose technical wizardry during his frequent solos is worthy of a virtuoso saxophonist.
-David Franklin, "Saxophonic" CD Reviews, JAZZTIMES MAGAZINE

JAZZ RATED "A"
"Like all jazz maestros, Gentry has developed a signature tone and phrasing that make him instantly identifiable. On tenor, he has honed a warm, burnished timbre that can sound tender or tough, complemented by an arsenal of inflections ranging from whispers to gritty growls and shrieks. On soprano, he has a sleek, glowing sound possessing a flute-like purity.

As evidenced on this CD, Gentry is a master of improvisational dynamics with an effusive approach in the lineage of Coleman Hawkins, Sonny Stitt and Johnny Griffin. John Coltrane is Gentry's favorite stylistic source as demonstrated by his fondness for rapid-fire arpeggios.

Gentry signals his intention to demonstrate his mastery of the classic jazz repertoire with the CD's opening number, a buoyant version of "Green Dolphin Street." Gentry embellishes his four choruses with characteristic arpeggios and trills punctuated by dazzling legato runs. Weller supplies a probing accompaniment that perfectly complements Gentry while offering him opportunities for harmonic diversion, before embarking on his own impetuous solo excursion. Weller's empathy with Gentry is also demonstrated on "A Night Has A Thousand Eyes" and " A Child Is Born," while he sits out on the remaining tunes.

The trio setting highlights Conner, who plays a bushel basket of bass throughout the album, and McMahon, who supplies rhythmic insistence without being overbearing. On "Up Jumped Spring," Gentry's soprano exudes joyfulness as it dances spryly over Conner's bass and McMahon's drums. "A Child Is Born" offers a more introspective side of Gentry's soprano and provides Weller another opportunity to exercise his startling facility in chromatic chord construction. "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes" receives a vigorous, high-energy treatment, with Gentry extemporizing fiercely over McMahon's churning attack, while Weller contributes a majestic solo calling to mind McCoy Tyner.

A more overtly Latinate rhythm propels Joe Henderson's composition, "Recordame," one of Gentry's favorite tunes. His florid legato runs recall the "Forest Flower" phrasing of Charles Lloyd. "Alone Together" is the set's minor ballad. Popularized in the jazz world about 40 years ago by a Ray Charles-Betty Carter duet, it frames a classic Gentry tenor-sax recital featuring some soulful blowing that acknowledges his indebtedness to soul-jazz giants like Stanley Turrentine.

Gentry tackles "I Want To Talk About You" in an optimistic, expressive mood reminiscent of Stitt's tenor balladry. The album concludes with a gallop through "Cherokee," which Hollis launches with a fragmented reference to "My Shining Hour," followed by a high-energy exploration of the song's chordal spectrum. The "Cherokee" performance supplies an exclamation point to this conclusive testament to the virtuosity and depth of an artist whose appeal has for too long been confined to lower Southern California. Those who get a taste of this musical confection are likely to clamor for more."
- Michael J. Williams, CD REVIEWS, NORTH COUNTY TIMES

What They Are Saying:
"Saxophonist Hollis Gentry played a tenor solo that was so beautiful it seemed no one in the crowd of a few thousand even moved until the last note." -PITTSBURGH POST GAZETTE

"There is an air of excitement about Gentry's NEON . . Gentry's sunny personality shines through his playing and in his rapport with the audience." --MUSIC CONNECTION

"The success of Gentry at his most intense does not derive so much from the startling innovation of his changes as from the passion - one might say the insistent exuberance - of his musical attack." --Jim Merod, Music Critic, SAN DIEGO UNION TRIBUNE

"[Larry]Carlton had almost all his original band members and featured Hollis Gentry on saxophone. Gentry's obvious enjoyment of the music was very evident, he also had the audience jumping! Closing the show was David Benoit with several tunes..." --THE FLIP SIDE, LA JAZZ SCENE

FROM FELLOW PLAYERS:
Michael O'Neill, of George Benson ensemble:
"The first time I played with Hollis Gentry was in Los Angeles. Hollis was doing gigs in support of his "NEON" album on the Nova label. The material on the album was contemporary groove jazz and quite impressive in its performance and feel. After doing a series of gigs together Hollis and I lost touch.

Sometime in the late 90's I was doing a show in San Diego with George Benson, and low and behold, who was the opening act? You guessed it, Hollis Gentry! The band he had was the one you hear on this CD. An incredible collection of guys doing loads of justice to the "straight ahead" jazz genre.

All this being side, it becomes obvious to me how effortlessly Hollis travels the full range between traditional contemporary genres of jazz with a dash of blues and only the highest level of mastery and integrity.
Simply put, Hollis Gentry is the "Real Deal", a man for all ages of Jazz."

Phil Upchurch, jazz guitarist
"The first time I heard Hollis Gentry was at an all star gig in which I was a participant. Hollis is one of those gifted musicians who transcends the instrument itself. He, the instrument and the music become one entity - a living breathing presence that totally captivates. His round, warm tone is not unlike that of a classically trained musician. His earthy feeling is like that of a delta blues guitarist but the vocabulary is classic jazz. When you pull all that together, as Hollis does, you have a true jazz artist! What he has cannot really be learned or taught. It's a gift of the highest order from the universe. Music chose him."

reviews

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  • Hollis was a wonderful jazz musician.
    author: Jaime Valle

    Hollis could play for days! check it out!

  • love
    author: Grant Clarkson

    Love you Hollis God Bless the family

  • If you are hungry for REAL jazz, this is truly the real thing!
    author: San Diego LIVE!

    If you are hungry for REAL jazz, this is truly the real thing! Reviewer: Georgi Streetman Picked up this CD at a gig where Hollis was playing, just knowing I wanted more of what I'd been hearing live. No matter how many times I listen to For The Record, each passage is so completely innovative, it seems as if I'm on a new odyssey with each hearing. Under Gentry's direction, the creative explorations with bassman Chris Conner, Tim McMahon's crisp "on it" percussion, along with Bob Weller's solid piano--all combine in a 'must have' CD for any real jazz buff.

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