Mark David Hollis (4 January 1955 – 25 February 2019) was an English musici… Read Full Bio ↴Mark David Hollis (4 January 1955 – 25 February 2019) was an English musician and singer-songwriter. He achieved commercial success and critical acclaim in the 1980s and 1990s as the co-founder, lead singer and principal songwriter of the band Talk Talk. Hollis wrote or co-wrote most of Talk Talk's music—including hits like "It's My Life" and "Life's What You Make It"—and in later works developed an experimental, contemplative style.
Beginning in 1981 as a synth-pop group with a New Romantic image, Talk Talk's sound became increasingly adventurous under Hollis's direction. For their third album, The Colour of Spring (1986), Talk Talk adopted an art pop sound that won critical and commercial favor; it remains their biggest commercial success. The band's final two albums, Spirit of Eden (1988) and Laughing Stock (1991), were radical departures from their early work, taking influence from jazz, folk, classical and experimental music. While they were commercial failures in their own time, these albums have come to be seen as early landmarks of post-rock music.
After Talk Talk disbanded in 1992, Hollis returned to music in 1998 with a self-titled solo album, which continued the direction of Talk Talk's sound but in a more minimal, spare, acoustic style. Following the release of his only solo album, Hollis largely retired from the recording industry.
Hollis died, aged 64, in February 2019.
Biography - early life (1955–1977):
Hollis was born on 4 January 1955 in Tottenham, London. He had two brothers, one elder and one younger. Little is known about his early life as Hollis was a reluctant interviewee throughout his career. He attended Tollington School, a now-defunct grammar school in Muswell Hill, London. In one interview, he claimed to have quit pursuing an education before he had completed his A-levels; in another, he said he had taken a course in child psychology at the University of Sussex but dropped out after a year and a half. Between school and the launch of his music career, he worked in factories and as a laboratory technician. Reflecting on this period in his life, he later said, "I could never wait to get home and start writing songs and lyrics. All day long I'd be jotting ideas down on bits of paper and just waiting for the moment when I could put it all down on tape!"
The Reaction (1977–1979)
Ed Hollis, Mark's older brother, mentored Mark and introduced him to the music industry. Ed was a disc jockey, producer and manager of several bands, including the pub-rock group Eddie and the Hot Rods. With Ed's encouragement and assistance, Mark formed his first band, The Reaction. Emerging in the post-punk era, the Reaction's sound reflected Hollis's interest in early garage rock as found on the compilation 1972 Nuggets. In a later interview, Hollis said, "Up until punk there's no way I could have imagined I could get a record deal because I didn't think I could play, but punk said, 'If you think you can play you can play.'"
In 1977, The Reaction recorded a demo for Island Records. A song from the demo, "Talk Talk Talk Talk," featured on the punk compilation Streets, released by the record-store chain and fledgling label Beggars Banquet. Written by Hollis, "Talk Talk Talk Talk" is an early version of Talk Talk's 1982 debut single, "Talk Talk." George Gimarc noted the Reaction's rendition of the song is about twice as fast and has "a completely different feel" than the 1982 version. Island released the Reaction's only single, "I Can't Resist", in 1978. George Gimarc likened "I Can't Resist" to early works by the Hollies and the Who. The Reaction disbanded the following year.
Around this time, Hollis's musical outlook broadened considerably. He began to listen to progressive rock like King Crimson and Pink Floyd, which were considered unfashionable in the punk era. His brother Ed introduced him to a wider range of music including jazz, particularly John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman. Miles Davis's collaborations with arranger Gil Evans on Porgy and Bess (1959) and Sketches of Spain (1960) had a lasting impact on Hollis; he later said Davis and Evans's work together "has space, tight arrangement and technique but it also has movement within it" and said those two albums "were extremely important albums to me then and they still are, because the values they work with are faultless."
Main article: Talk Talk
Hollis is best known for being the lead singer and primary songwriter of the band Talk Talk between 1981 and 1991. He was praised for his "always remarkable voice" and, along with Talk Talk's producer Tim Friese-Greene, took the lead in evolving the band's style from New Romantic into the more experimental and contemplative style that later became known as post-rock. Hollis has been credited with saying: "Before you play two notes, learn how to play one note. And don't play one note unless you've got a reason to play it." He also commented: "The silence is above everything, and I would rather hear one note than I would two, and I would rather hear silence than I would one note." In 1982, he cited his greatest influences as Burt Bacharach and William Burroughs.
Solo work and retirement:
Talk Talk disbanded in 1991. In 1998, Hollis released an eponymous solo debut album, Mark Hollis. In an interview at the time, he said: "To me the ultimate ambition is to make music that doesn't have a use by date, that goes beyond your own time." He also said: "Technique has never been an important thing to me. Feeling always has been, and always will be, above technique."
According to a 2008 article in The Guardian, he then largely retired from making music. He stated about his decision to retire from performing, "I choose for my family. Maybe others are capable of doing it, but I can't go on tour and be a good dad at the same time." Despite Hollis' absence from the public eye, he continued to be mentioned in the music press as an example of an artist who refused to sacrifice his artistic ambition for commercial success, and as a yardstick for current artists. His withdrawal from the public continued to fascinate music critics. By the time his solo album was released, Hollis had moved back from the countryside to London in order to provide his two sons with a more cosmopolitan environment.
He participated in occasional musical projects, including playing melodica and bass guitar on Anja Garbarek's 2001 album Smiling & Waving, as well as producing two tracks on it. In 2004, Hollis resurfaced briefly to receive a Broadcast Music Inc. Award for having written "It's My Life." In 2012, a piece of specially commissioned music by Hollis entitled "ARB Section 1," was used in the television series Boss.
Collaborations:
Hollis performed the solo track "Piano" on the 1998 minimalist album AV 1, by Phill Brown and Dave Allinson, under the pseudonym John Cope. This was later included on the 2001 Talk Talk compilation album Missing Pieces. He played piano on and co-wrote the track "Chaos" on the 1998 trip hop album Psyence Fiction by Unkle, later asking for his name to be removed from the album credits. He also co-produced and arranged two tracks ("The Gown" and "Big Mouth") on Anja Garbarek's 2001 album Smiling & Waving.
Personal life:
As of 1998, Hollis lived in Wimbledon, London with his wife (a teacher) and his two children. Hollis's desire to spend more time with his family was a major reason that Talk Talk stopped touring after 1986, and his reason for retiring from the music industry in 1998.
Death:
It was first reported on social media on 24 February 2019, and more widely the next day, that Mark Hollis had died, aged 64. Initial reports included a tweet from his cousin-in-law, the paediatrician Anthony Costello, and a tribute by Talk Talk’s bassist Paul Webb. Hollis's death, after "a short illness from which he never recovered," was confirmed by his former manager on 26 February.
Further tributes to Hollis included Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, The The, Steven Wilson, Alexis Taylor, Andy Kim, Charlotte Church, Flea, Roland Orzabal, Robin Pecknold, Peter Gabriel, Ryley Walker, Peter Hammill, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Marc Almond, Elijah Wood, Chris Baio and Broken Social Scene.
Beginning in 1981 as a synth-pop group with a New Romantic image, Talk Talk's sound became increasingly adventurous under Hollis's direction. For their third album, The Colour of Spring (1986), Talk Talk adopted an art pop sound that won critical and commercial favor; it remains their biggest commercial success. The band's final two albums, Spirit of Eden (1988) and Laughing Stock (1991), were radical departures from their early work, taking influence from jazz, folk, classical and experimental music. While they were commercial failures in their own time, these albums have come to be seen as early landmarks of post-rock music.
After Talk Talk disbanded in 1992, Hollis returned to music in 1998 with a self-titled solo album, which continued the direction of Talk Talk's sound but in a more minimal, spare, acoustic style. Following the release of his only solo album, Hollis largely retired from the recording industry.
Hollis died, aged 64, in February 2019.
Biography - early life (1955–1977):
Hollis was born on 4 January 1955 in Tottenham, London. He had two brothers, one elder and one younger. Little is known about his early life as Hollis was a reluctant interviewee throughout his career. He attended Tollington School, a now-defunct grammar school in Muswell Hill, London. In one interview, he claimed to have quit pursuing an education before he had completed his A-levels; in another, he said he had taken a course in child psychology at the University of Sussex but dropped out after a year and a half. Between school and the launch of his music career, he worked in factories and as a laboratory technician. Reflecting on this period in his life, he later said, "I could never wait to get home and start writing songs and lyrics. All day long I'd be jotting ideas down on bits of paper and just waiting for the moment when I could put it all down on tape!"
The Reaction (1977–1979)
Ed Hollis, Mark's older brother, mentored Mark and introduced him to the music industry. Ed was a disc jockey, producer and manager of several bands, including the pub-rock group Eddie and the Hot Rods. With Ed's encouragement and assistance, Mark formed his first band, The Reaction. Emerging in the post-punk era, the Reaction's sound reflected Hollis's interest in early garage rock as found on the compilation 1972 Nuggets. In a later interview, Hollis said, "Up until punk there's no way I could have imagined I could get a record deal because I didn't think I could play, but punk said, 'If you think you can play you can play.'"
In 1977, The Reaction recorded a demo for Island Records. A song from the demo, "Talk Talk Talk Talk," featured on the punk compilation Streets, released by the record-store chain and fledgling label Beggars Banquet. Written by Hollis, "Talk Talk Talk Talk" is an early version of Talk Talk's 1982 debut single, "Talk Talk." George Gimarc noted the Reaction's rendition of the song is about twice as fast and has "a completely different feel" than the 1982 version. Island released the Reaction's only single, "I Can't Resist", in 1978. George Gimarc likened "I Can't Resist" to early works by the Hollies and the Who. The Reaction disbanded the following year.
Around this time, Hollis's musical outlook broadened considerably. He began to listen to progressive rock like King Crimson and Pink Floyd, which were considered unfashionable in the punk era. His brother Ed introduced him to a wider range of music including jazz, particularly John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman. Miles Davis's collaborations with arranger Gil Evans on Porgy and Bess (1959) and Sketches of Spain (1960) had a lasting impact on Hollis; he later said Davis and Evans's work together "has space, tight arrangement and technique but it also has movement within it" and said those two albums "were extremely important albums to me then and they still are, because the values they work with are faultless."
Main article: Talk Talk
Hollis is best known for being the lead singer and primary songwriter of the band Talk Talk between 1981 and 1991. He was praised for his "always remarkable voice" and, along with Talk Talk's producer Tim Friese-Greene, took the lead in evolving the band's style from New Romantic into the more experimental and contemplative style that later became known as post-rock. Hollis has been credited with saying: "Before you play two notes, learn how to play one note. And don't play one note unless you've got a reason to play it." He also commented: "The silence is above everything, and I would rather hear one note than I would two, and I would rather hear silence than I would one note." In 1982, he cited his greatest influences as Burt Bacharach and William Burroughs.
Solo work and retirement:
Talk Talk disbanded in 1991. In 1998, Hollis released an eponymous solo debut album, Mark Hollis. In an interview at the time, he said: "To me the ultimate ambition is to make music that doesn't have a use by date, that goes beyond your own time." He also said: "Technique has never been an important thing to me. Feeling always has been, and always will be, above technique."
According to a 2008 article in The Guardian, he then largely retired from making music. He stated about his decision to retire from performing, "I choose for my family. Maybe others are capable of doing it, but I can't go on tour and be a good dad at the same time." Despite Hollis' absence from the public eye, he continued to be mentioned in the music press as an example of an artist who refused to sacrifice his artistic ambition for commercial success, and as a yardstick for current artists. His withdrawal from the public continued to fascinate music critics. By the time his solo album was released, Hollis had moved back from the countryside to London in order to provide his two sons with a more cosmopolitan environment.
He participated in occasional musical projects, including playing melodica and bass guitar on Anja Garbarek's 2001 album Smiling & Waving, as well as producing two tracks on it. In 2004, Hollis resurfaced briefly to receive a Broadcast Music Inc. Award for having written "It's My Life." In 2012, a piece of specially commissioned music by Hollis entitled "ARB Section 1," was used in the television series Boss.
Collaborations:
Hollis performed the solo track "Piano" on the 1998 minimalist album AV 1, by Phill Brown and Dave Allinson, under the pseudonym John Cope. This was later included on the 2001 Talk Talk compilation album Missing Pieces. He played piano on and co-wrote the track "Chaos" on the 1998 trip hop album Psyence Fiction by Unkle, later asking for his name to be removed from the album credits. He also co-produced and arranged two tracks ("The Gown" and "Big Mouth") on Anja Garbarek's 2001 album Smiling & Waving.
Personal life:
As of 1998, Hollis lived in Wimbledon, London with his wife (a teacher) and his two children. Hollis's desire to spend more time with his family was a major reason that Talk Talk stopped touring after 1986, and his reason for retiring from the music industry in 1998.
Death:
It was first reported on social media on 24 February 2019, and more widely the next day, that Mark Hollis had died, aged 64. Initial reports included a tweet from his cousin-in-law, the paediatrician Anthony Costello, and a tribute by Talk Talk’s bassist Paul Webb. Hollis's death, after "a short illness from which he never recovered," was confirmed by his former manager on 26 February.
Further tributes to Hollis included Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, The The, Steven Wilson, Alexis Taylor, Andy Kim, Charlotte Church, Flea, Roland Orzabal, Robin Pecknold, Peter Gabriel, Ryley Walker, Peter Hammill, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Marc Almond, Elijah Wood, Chris Baio and Broken Social Scene.
ARB Section 1
Mark Hollis Lyrics
We have lyrics for these tracks by Mark Hollis:
01 The colour of spring "Forget our fate", the peddler sings. Set up to sell my…
01-The Colour Of Spring "Forget our fate", the peddler sings. Set up to sell my…
01. The Colour Of Spring "Forget our fate", the peddler sings. Set up to sell my…
A Life Uniform Dream cites freedom Avow Relent Such suffering Few c…
A Life (1895 - 1915) Uniform Dream cites freedom Avow Relent Such suffering Few c…
A New Jerusalem And I'm home again But alone my child For the emptiness of…
Colour Of Spring "Forget our fate", the peddler sings. Set up to sell my…
Daily Planet Come far Compared to who Scoop the life you leech Immune to …
Inside looking out Feel my skin Lord Feel my luck tumbling down Left no life…
The Colour of Spring "Forget our fate", the peddler sings. Set up to sell my…
THE COLOUR OF SPRING (THIRD WORLD ORCHES... Forget our fate The pedlar sings Set up to sell my soul I…
The colour of spring/ The gift "Forget our fate", the peddler sings. Set up to sell my…
The Daily Planet Come far Compared to who Scoop the life you leech Immune to …
The Gift So sold out How dear you are How on earth did you…
The Watershed Come my love Kick the line Afield lies nothing But squalor t…
Watershed Come my love Kick the line Afield lies nothing but squalor t…
Westward Bound Opaline through her hair Born on an April tide Glowing in th…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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Dallasdeckard
Mark is undoubtedly one of the most talented and inspiring artists of the 20th century. His music is intensely beautiful and achieves something seldom accomplished in modern music: engaging and challenging one's intellect as well as moving the heart. The care, intelligence, hard work, attention to detail and deep, abiding love for music is apparent in every track he (and the rest of Talk Talk) made, particularly the last three albums. With every listen, the stunning craftsmanship and depth provides something new and interesting. You can feel the love and care that went into the work and it makes me feel like I'm connected to the music in an intimate and meaningful way every, single time. It is impossible to treat as background music, because it draws you in and demands a response. It's as if the music is constantly calling me to action, energizing my mind. It is electrifying and profoundly peaceful at the same time. The music is gently polarizing like that; I never listen to it without a passionate and calming, almost euphoric response. They coexist perfectly and the result is that I have the acute sensation that I'm listening to absolute truth, challenging me to never accept mediocrity in anything I do.
I know writing that sounds pompous and full of affectation, but I'm not the only person who experiences the music this way. It's pure beauty, sonic heroin emanating from a finely crafted Swiss watch. It was created to last, and it has lasted and touched many people; influencing and inspiring scores of musicians even to the present day. Guy Garvey of Elbow and Jimi Goodwin of Doves have both written passionately about their love, respect and admiration of Talk Talk. In the case of Garvey, I discovered Elbow's music because of his comments about Talk Talk. I figured if he understood and loved their music as I did, then his group had a very good chance of being brilliant, and I was not disappointed. They are definitely worthy of some comparison to Talk Talk, and I hope they continue to devote themselves passionately to their craft.
I Believe in You from Spirit of Eden is perhaps the most gorgeous and spiritual song I've ever heard. It encapsulates everything meaningful about Talk Talk. The haunting layers of sound and richness of the music in it astounds me, as does the rest of the album. Inheritance and The Rainbow, especially, make me feel like I'm in the studio with Talk Talk, like some incredibly lucky, sonic voyeur. I've listened to their music so often over the years that it has become intrinsically intertwined with my memories of both good and bad times. It can be so evocative sometimes I just can't listen to it. Their music is an aural thread that runs through my life, and yet it's not dated. It's timeless, almost outside of time, existing above us mere mortals. I'm happy to gush over it like some fawning schoolboy, it deserves that kind of devotion.
If you've never listened to it, I pity and envy you. I pity you for missing out on such powerful and exquisite music, but I envy you being able to discover it new, falling in love and binging on four amazing albums. Even their first is very good, although quite different from where they would end up. Experiencing that evolution was pure joy and extremely admirable. They made music they felt was meaningful, never bowing to some fans that wanted endless derivations of either The Party's Over or It's My Life. The same thing is true of Radiohead who had many fans that desired slightly modified versions of Pablo Honey. Rejecting that and standing firm despite the pressure, which I'm sure is just crushing and relentless especially from the record label (that just wants another hit) is intensely admirable. Talk Talk would rather quit altogether than compromise their art and that is a very, very rare quality that is even rarer in execution. Most would fold, I'm sure I would have, but they didn't and their music is a shining beacon for every band that wants more than just fame and money. They definitely set a very exacting standard of integrity for all to see, though few follow. It's a singular and unique example of true, artistic principle that goes beyond "doing it for the fans" (though that is also admirable when it's true and not obsequious pretending to impress fans).
Artistically, professionally and personally Talk Talk sets the bar high, and thank god they did, for we reap the benefits of their sterling commitment to absolute excellence. Here's hoping that Mark will come out of retirement and give us one more gem; though asking for that seems downright greedy considering the abundance of riches they bestowed on us. Many of us continue to be very grateful for all they did and we spread the love where we can, preaching the gospel of Talk Talk to those willing (and lucky) to listen to us and then listen to them. Thank you Mark, Lee, Paul and Tim... we miss you.
zerozero island
Rest In Peace, Mark. I'm so sorry we'll never hear more from you. I hope you and your family enjoyed the rest of your days here. You were taken from us far too soon.
fuelingforthelight
@wreckage 3001 Beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing that. Mark was so special.
Jake J
@wreckage 3001 Classic Mark Hollis, beautiful. Thanks
wreckage 3001
So ARB was his last work ever. I found this very early release.. https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x272yih
René Moncayo
Check out Lo moon and of course the rain tree crow reedition
Fatzers
+1
Dallasdeckard
Mark is undoubtedly one of the most talented and inspiring artists of the 20th century. His music is intensely beautiful and achieves something seldom accomplished in modern music: engaging and challenging one's intellect as well as moving the heart. The care, intelligence, hard work, attention to detail and deep, abiding love for music is apparent in every track he (and the rest of Talk Talk) made, particularly the last three albums. With every listen, the stunning craftsmanship and depth provides something new and interesting. You can feel the love and care that went into the work and it makes me feel like I'm connected to the music in an intimate and meaningful way every, single time. It is impossible to treat as background music, because it draws you in and demands a response. It's as if the music is constantly calling me to action, energizing my mind. It is electrifying and profoundly peaceful at the same time. The music is gently polarizing like that; I never listen to it without a passionate and calming, almost euphoric response. They coexist perfectly and the result is that I have the acute sensation that I'm listening to absolute truth, challenging me to never accept mediocrity in anything I do.
I know writing that sounds pompous and full of affectation, but I'm not the only person who experiences the music this way. It's pure beauty, sonic heroin emanating from a finely crafted Swiss watch. It was created to last, and it has lasted and touched many people; influencing and inspiring scores of musicians even to the present day. Guy Garvey of Elbow and Jimi Goodwin of Doves have both written passionately about their love, respect and admiration of Talk Talk. In the case of Garvey, I discovered Elbow's music because of his comments about Talk Talk. I figured if he understood and loved their music as I did, then his group had a very good chance of being brilliant, and I was not disappointed. They are definitely worthy of some comparison to Talk Talk, and I hope they continue to devote themselves passionately to their craft.
I Believe in You from Spirit of Eden is perhaps the most gorgeous and spiritual song I've ever heard. It encapsulates everything meaningful about Talk Talk. The haunting layers of sound and richness of the music in it astounds me, as does the rest of the album. Inheritance and The Rainbow, especially, make me feel like I'm in the studio with Talk Talk, like some incredibly lucky, sonic voyeur. I've listened to their music so often over the years that it has become intrinsically intertwined with my memories of both good and bad times. It can be so evocative sometimes I just can't listen to it. Their music is an aural thread that runs through my life, and yet it's not dated. It's timeless, almost outside of time, existing above us mere mortals. I'm happy to gush over it like some fawning schoolboy, it deserves that kind of devotion.
If you've never listened to it, I pity and envy you. I pity you for missing out on such powerful and exquisite music, but I envy you being able to discover it new, falling in love and binging on four amazing albums. Even their first is very good, although quite different from where they would end up. Experiencing that evolution was pure joy and extremely admirable. They made music they felt was meaningful, never bowing to some fans that wanted endless derivations of either The Party's Over or It's My Life. The same thing is true of Radiohead who had many fans that desired slightly modified versions of Pablo Honey. Rejecting that and standing firm despite the pressure, which I'm sure is just crushing and relentless especially from the record label (that just wants another hit) is intensely admirable. Talk Talk would rather quit altogether than compromise their art and that is a very, very rare quality that is even rarer in execution. Most would fold, I'm sure I would have, but they didn't and their music is a shining beacon for every band that wants more than just fame and money. They definitely set a very exacting standard of integrity for all to see, though few follow. It's a singular and unique example of true, artistic principle that goes beyond "doing it for the fans" (though that is also admirable when it's true and not obsequious pretending to impress fans).
Artistically, professionally and personally Talk Talk sets the bar high, and thank god they did, for we reap the benefits of their sterling commitment to absolute excellence. Here's hoping that Mark will come out of retirement and give us one more gem; though asking for that seems downright greedy considering the abundance of riches they bestowed on us. Many of us continue to be very grateful for all they did and we spread the love where we can, preaching the gospel of Talk Talk to those willing (and lucky) to listen to us and then listen to them. Thank you Mark, Lee, Paul and Tim... we miss you.
Anthony DiPasquale
RIP
bellinghammond
yeah, the last 3: What i most love about them is that the technology (audio 'cut-up' technique, predating samplers) remains within human hands throughout, in service to human expression....creating a rich, textured audio-bed of 'longing' to match Mark Hollis' expressive voice.
These albums will 'never age or die' as long as the human race remains 'human'
MrPink
I could not have said this better myself. So much of what you say is EXACTLY how I would have crafted the words. Exactly as you say, there are times when I become so overwhelmed by the later work and that of Mark's solo efforts that I can't continue to listen.
Like you, I too experienced the evolution step-by-step, from an industry vantage point. And I can't contribute anything else that would amplify, you say it all, PERFECTLY. So very nice to know a kindred spirit.
And God yes... do we miss you, guys...