Oliver Lake

by Chris Kelsey
Oliver Lake is an explosively unpredictable soloist, somewhat akin to Eric Dolphy in the ultra-nimble manner in which he traverses the full range of his main horn, the alto. Lakes astringent saxophone sound is his trademark — piercing, bluesy, and biting in the manner of a Maceo Parker, it was a perfect lead voice for the World Saxophone Quartet, the band with which Lake has made his most enduring mark on jazz.
Lake began playing drums as a child in St. Louis. He first picked up the saxophone at the age of 18. Lake received his bachelors degree in 1968 from Lincoln University. From the late 60s to the early 70s he taught school, played in various contexts around St. Louis, and led — along with Julius Hemphill and Charles Bobo Shaw, among others — a musicians collective, the Black Artists Group (BAG). Lake lived in Paris from 1972-74, where he worked in a quintet comprised of fellow BAG members. By 1975, he had (along with most of his BAG colleagues) moved to New York, where he became active on what was called by some the loft jazz scene. In 1976, with Hemphill, Hamiet Bluiett, and David Murray, he founded the World Saxophone Quartet. Over the next two decades, that band reached a level of popularity perhaps unprecedented by a free jazz ensemble. Its late-80s albums of Ellington works and R&B tunes attracted an audience that otherwise might never have found its way to such an esoteric style. Lake continued working as a leader apart from the WSQ, he made excellent small-group albums in the 70s and 80s for Arista/Freedom and Black Saint. In the 80s, Lake led a reggae-oriented band, Jump Up, that had a significant degree of pop success, though its artistic appeal fades in comparison with his jazz work. In the 90s, Lake continued to stretch creatively; a duo album with classically trained pianist Donal Fox sets him free to explore the more fanciful side of his musical personality. Late-90s concerts with WSQ, his own groups, and such duo mates as the hyper-dextrous pianist Borah Bergman show that Lake is still on top of his game.