Scott Colley (born November 24, 1963) is an American jazz double bassist and composer. As of 2024, he has been nominated for 4 Grammy Awards, including Best Jazz Instrumental Album for Guided Tour in 2014 and Still Dreaming in 2019. Throughout his career, he has toured, recorded, and played with musicians such as Herbie Hancock, Jim Hall, Carmen McRae, Chris Potter, Julian Lage, Brian Blade, and Pat Metheny.

Early life and education

Colley was born on November 24, 1963 in Los Angeles, California. He began studying bass at age 11 after his older brother Jim, a drummer, said he "thought it would be cool to have another rhythm section instrument in the family." At 13, he began studying with bassist Monty Budwig and played twice a week at a club in Pasadena, where he spent three years being mentored by musicians such as Jimmy Rowles. At Eagle Rock High School, he studied under John Rinaldo. He auditioned at California Institute for the Arts after learning that Charlie Haden taught there and was granted a full-ride scholarship. He studied with Haden and Fred Tinsley, and began touring and recording with jazz singer Carmen McRae prior to graduating in 1988. He then moved to New York City.

Career

In 1988 and 1989, he accompanied McRae on a tour across the US and in Tokyo. He also performed with musicians including Dizzy Gillespie and Clifford Jordan. In the 1990s, members of his touring groups included Jim Hall, John Scofield, Joe Henderson, Art Farmer, Joe Lovano, Toots Thielemans, Bobby Hutcherson, and Bob Berg. He also played extensively with Andrew Hill's Another Point of Departure sextet. In 1996, he released his debut album, Portable Universe, which featured Chris Potter and David Binney. He recorded Subliminal... (1998) with a quartet, while This Place (1997) and The Magic Line (2000) were both recorded with a trio including Potter and Bill Stewart. Colley toured extensively as a member of Herbie Hancock's working trio for five years in the early 2000s, periodically performing alongside other music groups such as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He performed with two separate quartets, one with Gary Thomas and the other with Bobby Hutcherson, as well as with Andrew Hill's trio and sextet and Chris Potter's quartet. Initial Wisdom, his 2003 album release, featured Ravi Coltrane, Adam Rogers, and Bill Stewart. In 2005, he worked on the Directions in Music tour with Michael Brecker, Herbie Hancock, Roy Hargrove, and Terri Lyne Carrington. He continued performing with Jim Hall and joined a trio with Pat Metheny. Around this time, he began taking residencies at institutions including the Banff Centre, Virginia Commonwealth University, and Vallekilde Folk High School. In 2007, he toured internationally with Chris Potter and Antonio Sánchez. In the mid-2000s, Colley recorded projects with Chris Potter, Abbey Lincoln, Luciana Souza, Kenny Werner, Adam Rogers, and Donny McCaslin. In 2007, he joined Billy Childs' Jazz-Chamber Ensemble with Brian Blade and taught a workshop at Berklee with Antonio Sánchez and Chris Potter. He also released his fourth album, Architect of the Silent Moment, in 2007. It was composed entirely by him with the exception of "Smoke Stack," which was written by Andrew Hill. The album was recorded with a quartet including Ralph Alessi, Craig Taborn, Bill Frissell, and Brian Blade with appearances by David Binney, Jason Moran, Adam Rogers, Gregoire Maret, and Antonio Sánchez. He and the core quartet began touring prior to the album being fully finished. In the late 2000s, he performed in the US, Europe, and South America with Mark Turner and Antonio Sánchez; Chris Potter's Underground; Edward Simon; the Antonio Sánchez Quartet with Sánchez, Miguel Zenón, and David Sánchez; Magic Circle with Dave Douglas and Mark Feldman; the David Binney Quartet with Binney, Craig Taborn and Brian Blade; and the Kenny Werner Quintet with Werner, Randy Brecker, David Sánchez, and Ari Hoenig. During the summer of 2010, he released Empire, an album entirely of original compositions, on CAM Jazz with longtime collaborators Frissell, Alessi, Blade, and Taborn. He continued touring with Jim Hall and Joey Baron; Chris Potter; the Kenny Werner Quintet; and Michel Portal and Gary Burton and spent the summer doing a teaching residency at the Siena Summer Workshop in Siena, Italy. Between 2011 and 2015, Colley's group lineups included a trio with Chris Potter and Antonio Sánchez; the Koppel Colley Blade Collective with Benjamin Koppel and Brian Blade; Bob James, David Sanborn, and Steve Gadd at the London Jazz Festival (2013); a trio with Julian Lage and Kenny Wollesen; the Steel House trio with Edward Simon and Brian Blade; and the Pat Metheny Trio with Metheny and Kenny Garrett and a quartet with Metheny and Gary Burton, both at the Detroit International Jazz Festival in 2015. He was also a member of the Jim Hall Trio until Hall's death in 2013. Colley appeared on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz on NPR in 2014 with Chris Potter. Between 2016 and 2019, he played with many of the same groups: a trio with Gary Burton and Julian Lage; Chris Potter's Underground Quartet; and the Steel House. He held a residency at The Stone with the Nels Cline Four in 2016 with Nels Cline, Julian Lage, and Tom Rainey. He performed with Joshua Redman on his Still Dreaming tour in 2017 and accompanied Luciana Souza alongside Chico Pinheiro at the Portland Jazz Festival in 2018. Also in 2017, he released his next album, Seven. In January 2020, Colley, Julian Lage, and Dave King had a six-night residency at Village Vanguard, though this was interrupted by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In December, he performed via livestream on the Jazzwise Facebook page with Tim Berne and Nasheet Waits. He was back to touring the following summer, heading to Europe with Antonio Sánchez, Donny McCaslin, and Miguel Zenón. In 2022, he toured with Brian Blade and Wolfgang Muthspiel.

Personal life

Colley and his wife have a daughter (born c. 2002).

Discography