Biography
Oliver Lake performs as an explosively unpredictable soloist whose approach recalls Eric Dolphy through the ultra-nimble way he covers the complete span of his principal instrument, the alto. His trademark saxophone timbre—piercing, bluesy, and biting like that of Maceo Parker—proved an ideal lead voice for the World Saxophone Quartet, the group with which Lake has arguably produced his most enduring work.
As a youngster in St. Louis, Lake began on drums before taking up the saxophone at age 18. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Lincoln University in 1968. Between the late 1960s and early 1970s he taught school, performed in assorted St. Louis settings, and co-directed, with Julius Hemphill, Charles “Bobo” Shaw and others, the musicians’ collective known as the Black Artists’ Group (BAG). From 1972 to 1974 Lake resided in Paris, working in a quintet that included fellow BAG members. By 1975 he and most of his BAG colleagues had relocated to New York and become active in the so-called “loft jazz” scene. In 1976 Lake joined Hemphill, Hamiet Bluiett and David Murray to found the World Saxophone Quartet. Over the following two decades the ensemble attained a level of popularity rare for any free-jazz group; its late-1980s albums of Ellington material and R&B songs drew listeners who might otherwise never have encountered such an esoteric idiom.
Apart from the WSQ, Lake maintained an active career as a leader, issuing strong small-group recordings on Arista/Freedom and Black Saint throughout the 1970s and 1980s. During the 1980s he also directed the reggae-inflected band Jump Up, which enjoyed notable pop success even though its artistic impact ultimately proved less durable than his jazz output. In the 1990s Lake kept expanding his creative range; a duo album with classically trained pianist Donal Fox allowed him to explore the more fanciful aspects of his musical personality. Late-1990s performances with the WSQ, his own ensembles and duo partners such as the hyper-dexterous pianist Borah Bergman confirmed that Lake remained at the height of his powers.
Into the twenty-first century the saxophonist sustained an active schedule of performing and recording both as leader and collaborator. He formed Trio 3 with bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Andrew Cyrille, releasing Open Ideas on Palmetto in 2002, the 2008 album Berne Concert (with pianist Irène Schweizer) and 2009’s At This Time (with Geri Allen) on Intakt; he recorded with the String Trio of New York on the 2005 Barking Hoop release Frozen Ropes; and he issued Cloth by the Oliver Lake Big Band in 2003 and Oliver Lake Quartet Live (featuring Dine’ [Navaho tribe] vocalist and flutist Mary Redhouse) in 2006. That same year he received the Mellon Jazz Living Legacy Award at the Kennedy Center. Two years later he released Makin’ It by the Oliver Lake Organ Trio and saw a reissue of 1974’s Passing Thru, both on Passin’ Thru, and he also put out Time Being by Trio 3 on Intakt. He remained with the label for 2010’s For a Little Dancin’, a trio date with the European rhythm section of Dieter Ulrich and Christian Weber.
Although touring occupied most of the next three years, Lake also devoted time to composition and to recordings by other artists. In 2013 he and guitarist Marc Ducret appeared as featured soloists on Tarbaby’s Fanon for Rogue Art; he was also featured with Katja Cruz on Hexaphone: The Cosmology of Improvised Music on Rudi and with Weber, Ulrich and Nils Wogram on All Decks for Intakt. In 2014 Lake was chosen for the Doris Duke Artist Award and appeared on René Bottlang’s and Andy McKee’s Autumn in New York. With bassist William Parker he issued the 2015 Intakt duo recording To Roy, a tribute to the late trumpeter Roy Campbell, Jr.; the following year he released the collaborative album Live at the Downtown Music Gallery NYC with Vinny Golia, Ross Hammond and Adam Lane. In 2017 Passin’ Thru brought out Right Up On, a set of his compositions performed with the FLUX Quartet.
As a youngster in St. Louis, Lake began on drums before taking up the saxophone at age 18. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Lincoln University in 1968. Between the late 1960s and early 1970s he taught school, performed in assorted St. Louis settings, and co-directed, with Julius Hemphill, Charles “Bobo” Shaw and others, the musicians’ collective known as the Black Artists’ Group (BAG). From 1972 to 1974 Lake resided in Paris, working in a quintet that included fellow BAG members. By 1975 he and most of his BAG colleagues had relocated to New York and become active in the so-called “loft jazz” scene. In 1976 Lake joined Hemphill, Hamiet Bluiett and David Murray to found the World Saxophone Quartet. Over the following two decades the ensemble attained a level of popularity rare for any free-jazz group; its late-1980s albums of Ellington material and R&B songs drew listeners who might otherwise never have encountered such an esoteric idiom.
Apart from the WSQ, Lake maintained an active career as a leader, issuing strong small-group recordings on Arista/Freedom and Black Saint throughout the 1970s and 1980s. During the 1980s he also directed the reggae-inflected band Jump Up, which enjoyed notable pop success even though its artistic impact ultimately proved less durable than his jazz output. In the 1990s Lake kept expanding his creative range; a duo album with classically trained pianist Donal Fox allowed him to explore the more fanciful aspects of his musical personality. Late-1990s performances with the WSQ, his own ensembles and duo partners such as the hyper-dexterous pianist Borah Bergman confirmed that Lake remained at the height of his powers.
Into the twenty-first century the saxophonist sustained an active schedule of performing and recording both as leader and collaborator. He formed Trio 3 with bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Andrew Cyrille, releasing Open Ideas on Palmetto in 2002, the 2008 album Berne Concert (with pianist Irène Schweizer) and 2009’s At This Time (with Geri Allen) on Intakt; he recorded with the String Trio of New York on the 2005 Barking Hoop release Frozen Ropes; and he issued Cloth by the Oliver Lake Big Band in 2003 and Oliver Lake Quartet Live (featuring Dine’ [Navaho tribe] vocalist and flutist Mary Redhouse) in 2006. That same year he received the Mellon Jazz Living Legacy Award at the Kennedy Center. Two years later he released Makin’ It by the Oliver Lake Organ Trio and saw a reissue of 1974’s Passing Thru, both on Passin’ Thru, and he also put out Time Being by Trio 3 on Intakt. He remained with the label for 2010’s For a Little Dancin’, a trio date with the European rhythm section of Dieter Ulrich and Christian Weber.
Although touring occupied most of the next three years, Lake also devoted time to composition and to recordings by other artists. In 2013 he and guitarist Marc Ducret appeared as featured soloists on Tarbaby’s Fanon for Rogue Art; he was also featured with Katja Cruz on Hexaphone: The Cosmology of Improvised Music on Rudi and with Weber, Ulrich and Nils Wogram on All Decks for Intakt. In 2014 Lake was chosen for the Doris Duke Artist Award and appeared on René Bottlang’s and Andy McKee’s Autumn in New York. With bassist William Parker he issued the 2015 Intakt duo recording To Roy, a tribute to the late trumpeter Roy Campbell, Jr.; the following year he released the collaborative album Live at the Downtown Music Gallery NYC with Vinny Golia, Ross Hammond and Adam Lane. In 2017 Passin’ Thru brought out Right Up On, a set of his compositions performed with the FLUX Quartet.
Albums
