Scott Colley is a prolific jazz bassist, composer, and bandleader. A four-time Grammy nominee, he has performed on over 200 recordings, eight as a bandleader and composer. He is a first-call sideman, renowned for his role in groups led by
Andrew Hill,
John Scofield,
Herbie Hancock, and
Chris Potter, among many others, and part of several all-star projects such as
Still Dreaming with
Joshua Redman,
Ron Miles, and
Brian Blade (
Colley's longest and most frequent collaborator) and Steel House with pianist
Edward Simon and
Blade. As a bassist,
Colley's approach is welcoming and intuitive, even at its most experimental. Seldom flashy, his deeply organic approach to harmony is combined with a kaleidoscopic view of improvisation to make him one of post-bop's most impressive practitioners. 1998's
Subliminal, his sophomore leader date with saxophonist
Chris Potter, pianist
Bill Carrothers, and drummer
Bill Stewart, was released on Criss Cross and is considered a cornerstone in the post-bop canon. His nearly two-decade tenure in
Potter's group netted albums as rigorously adventurous as 2002's
Traveling Mercies and 2007's Song for Anyone.
Colley's own
Architect of the Silent Moment, issued by CAM Jazz in 2007, has been universally lauded as a 21st century jazz classic, as much for his compositions as for its stellar cast, which includes
Craig Taborn, drummer
Antonio Sanchez, and trumpeter
Ralph Alessi. 2017's Seven made numerous year end critics' lists. In the 2010s,
Colley has worked extensively with guitarists
Julian Lage,
Nels Cline, and
Wolfgang Muthspiel.
Colley was born in Los Angeles in 1963. Obsessed with music from an early age, he chose bass at age 11, and by 13 was being tutored by bassist
Monty Budwig. He attended Eagle Rock High School, where John Rinaldo was the school’s musical director. He was awarded a full scholarship to the California Institute for the Arts (CalArts) after graduation. During his tenure,
Colley focused on composition and jazz studies, but also studied privately with
Charlie Haden and classical bassist Fred Tinsley of the
Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Colley developed an early reputation as a sideman and composer. In 1986, he was tapped to tour and record with singer
Carmen McRae; two years before he earned a Bachelor of Music degree. Afterwards, he relocated to New York City and continued to tour with
McRae. His work earned opportunities to work with headliners including
Dizzy Gillespie,
Clifford Jordan,
Jim Hall,
Roy Hargrove,
John Scofield,
Joe Henderson, and
Art Farmer. By the late ‘90s, he added studio and touring stints with groups led by
Joe Lovano,
Toots Thielemans,
Bobby Hutcherson, and
Bob Berg to his resume. He also did extensive touring as a member of
Andrew Hill's "Another Point of Departure" sextet. During the first decade of the new century,
Colley, now an internationally recognized talent, toured as a member of
Hancock’s regular trio and spent five years in
Hutcherson's quartet in addition to his membership in
Hill’s various groups and
Potter's quartet. The bassist issued a pair of albums in 2000:
This Place on Steeplechase and The Magic Line for Arabesque, both with colleagues from the
Potter group including its leader. Also in 2003, he played on recordings by
Donny McCaslin (
The Way Through),
Brad Shepik (Drip), and the
Andrew Hill Jazzpar Octet +1 (The Day the World Stood Still). The following year,
Colley continued to work with
Potter,
Hall, and bands led by trumpeter
Alex Sipiagin and
David Binney. Between 2005 and 2007, he toured extensively with "Directions in Music," a collaboration with
Michael Brecker,
Hancock,
Roy Hargrove, and
Terri Lyne Carrington. He also played trio concerts with
Pat Metheny, toured with
Hall, and toured Europe and the U.S. with
Potter and
Antonio Sanchez in addition to traveling and gigging with his own group. Also during that period,
Colley and a host of American jazzmen such as
Wallace Roney,
Gil Goldstein, and
Lovano, were part of the large ensemble that accompanied French icon
Juliette Greco on her late-career outing Le Temps D'Une Chanson in 2006. Later that year, the bassist played on recordings by
McCaslin (
Soar,
Give and Go), and pianist
Kenny Werner (Democracy Live at the Blue Note).
In 2007,
Colley issued his bona fide modern jazz classic
Architect of the Silent Moment. The critical acclaim pushed the album onto the jazz charts. It was a wildly busy year. In addition to continuing his sideman work with Sipiagin,
Werner, and
McCaslin,
Colley served in
Abbey Lincoln's studio ensemble for
Abbey Sings Abbey and assumed his membership in Steel House with
Simon. The following year, in addition to touring whenever possible with his own band,
Colley primarily played on albums by vocalists including
Jane Monheit and
Monday Michiru.
Colley released the acclaimed
Empire in 2010 for CAM Jazz. His lineup included guitarist
Bill Frisell (whom the bassist had worked with on
Hall's Hemispheres),
Blade,
Alessi, and
Taborn. It was chosen by prominent jazz critics including John Kelman as one of the year's finest jazz releases.
Colley toured with his quartet and trio in the U.S., Europe, and South America, Chris Potter's Underground,
the Antonio Sanchez Quartet,
Magic Circle (a trio with
Dave Douglas and
Mark Feldman),
Binney's quartet, and
Werner. He was so busy as a sideman and touring musician he didn’t issue another recording under his own name until 2017.
Over the next five years,
Colley played on several important recordings including The Master's Diary with
Simon and drummer
Clarence Penn, and as bassist in piano trios led by
Enrico Pieranunzi and Alex Mercado. In 2014 the bassist and
Sanchez served as the rhythm section on Croatian pianist
Matija Dedić's Sentiana. The following year
Colley took part in the live all-star
ECM tribute, Hommage À Eberhard Weber, alongside
Pat Metheny,
Gary Burton,
Michael Gibbs,
Jan Garbarek, and the
SWR Big Band. The following year,
Colley joined guitarist
Julian Lage's trio for
Arclight.
Colley released Seven for ArtistShare in 2017. Showcasing his working quartet named Current with pianist/vocalist
Kevin Hays, trumpeter
Johnathan Finlayson, and drummer
Nate Smith, the album drew critical accolades and airplay in Europe, especially when the band toured there. In 2018,
Colley joined
Joshua Redman,
Blade, and
Ron Miles for the Grammy-nominated recording
Still Dreaming, in a quartet inspired by the legendary
Old and New Dreams, made up of former
Ornette Coleman sidemen
Charlie Haden,
Don Cherry,
Ed Blackwell, and
Dewey Redman.
Colley contributed two compositions to the set including its opener "New Year." The album also included one tune by
Coleman ("Comme Il Faut"). The bassist also played on
Nels Cline's acclaimed double-offering
Currents, Constellations, and on
Lage's quintet date
Modern Lore. In 2019,
Colley, in addition to leading and touring with Current, replaced bassist
Larry Grenadier in guitarist
Wolfgang Muthspiel's working trio with
Blade on drums. Their recorded debut,
Angular Blues, appeared on
ECM in 2020. ~ Thom Jurek