An exuberant player with attractive tones on both tenor and alto, Red Holloway was also a humorous blues singer. Whether it be hard bop, blues, or r&b, Holloway held his own with anyone. Holloway played in Chicago with Gene Wright's big beat (1943-1946), served in the Army, and then played with Roosevelt Sykes (1948) and Nat Towles (1949-1950), before leading his own quartet (1952-1961) during an era when he also recorded with many blues and r&b acts. Holloway rose to fame in 1963 while touring with Jack Mcduff, making his first dates as a leader for Prestige (1963-1965). Although he cut many records in r&b settings, Red Holloway was a strong hard bop soloist at heart, as he proved in the '70s when he battled Sonny Stitt to a tie on their recorded collaboration. He went on to work mostly as a leader, but also guested with Juggernaut and the Cheathams, and played with Clark Terry on an occasional basis. He continued being active as a player into the 21st century, releasing Standing Room Only on Chiaroscuro Records in 2000; Keep That Groove Going!, with Plas Johnson, on Milestone Records in 2001; Coast To Coast, also on Milestone Records, in 2003; and In Person at the Whisky a Go Go in 2009 on Delmark Records. Holloway died on February 25, 2012 of kidney failure and stroke. He was 84 years old. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi