Jools Holland OBE DL was born Julian Miles Holland on 24th January 1958 in Blackheath, South East London.
At the age of eight, he could play the piano fluently by ear, and by the time he reached his early teens he was proficient and confident enough to be appearing regularly in many of the pubs in South East London and the East End Docks.
At the age of 15, Jools was introduced to Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford; he joined Squeeze, followed by Gilson Lavis shortly afterwards (Gilson had already played with, among others, B.B. King, Chuck Berry, and Max Wall) – who still drums with Jools.
In 1987, Jools formed The Jools Holland Big Band – comprising himself and Gilson Lavis. This has gradually metamorphosed into the current 19-piece Jools Holland and His Rhythm & Blues Orchestra, which consists of pianist, organist, drummer, three female vocals, guitar, bass guitar, two tenor saxophones, two alto saxophones, baritone saxophone, three trumpets, and three trombones.
Jools released his most recent album Pianola.PIANO & FRIENDS in November 2021 on Warner Music. Produced by Nitin Sawhney, Laurie Latham and with one track co-written and produced by Mousse T., the album is a loving tribute to the black and white keys that have become synonymous with Holland and his show-stopping style. A constant champion of musicians around the world, Jools invited many of his friends to join in from different corners of the world, from musical legends and jazz greats to the next generation's stars: Lang Lang; David Gilmour; Tom Jones; Ruby Turner; Herbie Hancock; Booker T. Jones; Gregory Porter; Mousse T.; YolanDa Brown; Dr. John; Joe Bonamassa; Trombone Shorty... to name a few.
Barely off the road after a successful 2023 UK tour, Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra are preparing for their 2024 live dates, which will see an array of guests as well as the longstanding collaborators Ruby Turner, Louise Marshall and Sumudu Jayatilaka on vocals and the exuberant Rhythm & Blues Orchestra with Gilson Lavis on drums. Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Imelda May will be joining for some of the Spring/Summer shows and international star Marc Almond for the Autumn Tour. Blues guitar prodigy Toby Lee will also be delighting audiences on all dates.
Jools Holland the R&B Orchestra are also very excited to announce that they have been collaborating with Sir Rod Stewart on some new recordings and have released the brand-new album Swing Fever, a 13-track sparkling salute to the timeless songs of the big band years. The album went straight to the top spot in the UK album charts, rewarding Jools with his first No. 1 album of his music career.