Rusty Holloway comes home for reunion show

Rusty Holloway

After more than three decades as one of the top bass players in the Southeast, Rusty Holloway retired from his position at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and moved to New York City to play music full-time.

Now, he's reunited with some of the top musicians from his Tennessee years for a special performance while making a return visit to his home state. The Rusty Holloway Reunion Tour plays Barking Legs Theater Thursday, Nov. 30.

For this brief reunion tour, Holloway will be joined by the saxophone and guitar team of Alan Wyatt and Shawn Perkinson, both on faculty at Lee University. Rounding out the group will be pianist Ben Dockery and drummer Keith Brown of Knoxville.

"Rusty is an absolutely phenomenal jazz and classical bassist. It will be a powerhouse show for jazz fans," says Bruce Kaplan, Barking Legs music director.

Early in his professional career, Holloway accompanied R&B artists such as the Tams, Platters, Drifters and Coasters, as well as Fats Domino, Martha Reeves and Percy Sledge. He focused more on jazz in the 1970s, living and working in the Northeast. His experience included playing with jazz icons Dizzy Gillespie and Woody Herman, as well as modern masters like Joe Lovano.

He held the position of bass professor, jazz and classical music, at UTK from 1979-2014. He was a founding member of the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra. During those years, he had the opportunity to play with legendary jazz pianists Hank Jones, Tommy Flanagan, Mulgrew Miller, Roland Hanna, Monty Alexander, Harold Mabern and Donald Brown. Also on Holloway's resume are performances with saxophonists Jimmy Heath, James Moody and Eric Alexander.

"Rusty is an absolute monster bassist. The group is putting together an exciting mix of tunes, both original and classic, for this tour," says Kaplan. "Anyone with even a passing interest in jazz will be knocked out."

Show time is 7:30 p.m.

For more information: www.barkinglegs.org.