ALLAN HOLDSWORTH - The Final Years | with JOHN McCRACKEN

Comments · 741

• VO

  @voiceselectric4828 · 1 year ago (edited)

  I initially met Allan as a jazz journalist, but my first experiences with him were Soft Machine's "Bundles," and a couple years later "UK."  On many occasions since his "Road Games" sessions, I had the unbelievable luck to hear most of his record mixes in the studio.  We had a long and close friendship with him between 1982 until he passed.  I helped edit and wrote the text of his book of sheet music "Reaching for the Uncommon Chord."  I've a long litany of many stories to tell, several which you touch upon here.  He became one of my life's closest friends .  I wrote liner notes for some of the releases, the most exhaustive was for the box set "Reaching for The Uncommon Chord."  I don't think many who knew of him have related his approach to scales, and the background where he learned theory from his grandfather Sam, who raised him when he grew up in Bradford.  Indeed Allan might well be the funniest human being I've ever met.

  202

• JE

  @jeromebuigues1905 · 6 months ago

  Here is my personal Allan story. It was in 1993, in Nancy, France. I was 19, young guitarist, studying music and jazz there, and I discovered Allan's music a couple of years before, and got completely blown away. He was on tour in Europe just after the release of "Wardenclyffe Tower" with Gary Husband, Skuli Sverissen and Steve Hunt. Some good friends of mine were opening for his concert in Nancy, I begged them to say I was their stage tech, just to be there and attend the soundcheck. It was surreal being just next to him while he was "doing Allan". Just after the soundcheck, he came to me and asked "how's the sound like?". I couldn't answer properly, shocked by what I witnessed on stage. His guitar sound was unlike anything else, smooth, deep, articulate. Loud but never aggressive... Lush cristalline clean, and ultra wide but very focused lead... The band was sounding incredible, with so much energy. We talked a little backstage, having a beer, waiting for the concert to start. He was a perfect gentleman, very kind to me.  I was surprised that he asked me so many questions about why I was there and he seemed surprised that a young guy like me loved his music. Then the concert started and blew me away. When he got off stage, I reached out to him, shook his hand and said "Thank you, Sir...what I saw tonight is gonna change my life forever" . He smiled at me and answered a polite "thank you". Never saw him again ever after. But this concert changed my life.

  38

• RO

  @RobertPetraglia · 1 year ago

  Allan was glitching in our dimension, so he just went back to his own.

  65

• FL

  @floodgatestudios1825 · 8 months ago

  One of my favorite Allan lines about touring " this tour is amazing, we are making tens of dollars..."

  13

• HA

  @HarveyMushman888 · 1 year ago

  I met Allan in 1995 I believe. It was nothing to do with music and I had no idea who he was. He just said he was a musician. I would go down to his Geodesic dome home in Vista CA and drink beer in his laundry room with him and his neighbors and friends. It wasn't until the 4th or 5th time they explained to me just how good he really was and they played a recording of him playing Strawberry Fields which was obviously out of character for him but it was amazing. He and his family were very welcoming to me and I slept on his couch numerous times.. went to a couple of his birthday parties. Allan was a very funny, very intelligent nice guy who loved to hang out, drink some beer and discuss almost anything. He didn't hang out with musicians... just regular people. He  was very humble and self-deprecating which a lot of people without huge egos are... but he knew how good he was. You are mistaking this for mental illness which is a mistake...he was also a perfectionist who I'm convinced could hear things others couldn't which also meant he could hear the imperfections others couldn't. Once he was upset about the difference in two recording and had me listen. I couldn't tell any difference but he could. Please keep in mind ..and I wouldn't reveal this if I hadn't already seen it elsewhere on the internet.. but he told me one day that when he spoke of his mother and father he was really talking about his grandmother and grandfather as his mother didn't want to raise him. That.. while responsible for his musical education also surely affected him psychologically as it would...

  81

• ST

  @StreetsOfVancouverChannel · 1 year ago (edited)

  The best drum clinic that I attended was one where Chad Wackerman was scheduled to play here in Vancouver (Canada). I was aware that he was in town playing with Holdsworth that same night. Well SURPRISE-SURPRISE Allan Holsworth also showed up to play at the clinic. We literally pulled up our chairs and sat very close to the band as they played. It was truly an exceptional hour of playing for a 'drum clinic'!

  52

• CO

  @coolguitarchannel · 1 year ago

  When my friends who have never heard Holdsworth ask me what was so great about him, I like to say "this is a guy who came up in the 70s but even if he was coming up today he’d still be a hundred years ahead of his time"

  64

• BR

  @breezewayrecords · 6 months ago

  The Coltrane of guitar. So deep and soulful.

  10

• RO

  @Rog5446 · 1 year ago

  Every genius had a flaw, and Allan Holdsworth paid the price of every genius.

  16

• TR

  @Truthinshredding1 · 1 year ago

  BTW for all those who type Alan... It's ALLAN!

  43

• NA

  @nasticanasta · 1 year ago

  I met Allan the first time I saw him in 84, very funny story that we would joke about many times over the years. I got to talk with him every time he played near my area. Had dinner several times and usually beers after a show. A very humble giant of a musician. His complaint was the producers and people in the music business, in the final years before he passed, he was getting more and more frustrated over their control over his material. <br>Allan told me that he did not want people to emulate him, in fact he was downright against it, he wanted to inspire not create clones.<br><br>So about 18 times I suppose of seeing Allan from I.O.U. to his final band...lots of laughs and great times to remember, I miss him RIP.<br>I also got to know Larry Coryell in the same manner, Larry would actually shout out to me from wherever in a venue which was very funny and endearing that he would be happy to see me, he passed a few years after Allan, those two passings were very hard on me.

  32

• ST

  @stevegibbsguitar · 1 year ago

  Many thanks for giving us this glimpse into a sad and disturbing story. There&apos;s a bit of a parallel with Jaco&apos;s bipolar condition and chaotic life situation in his last years.

  23