Christopher Holland

Christopher William Holland (born 18 September 1966, Greenwich, London, England) is an English keyboard player, singer and songwriter. He is the younger brother of Jools Holland and twin of Richard Edward Holland (drummer).

Career

Holland took up the piano at the age of seven. Recording his first song, "It's Getting Late", when he was just twelve, he used a vintage four-track reel to reel handed down from his elder brother Jools and his then band, Squeeze. By his early teens while still at school, Holland formed his own band, B Sharp, playing mainly organ and singing. The band made their first television debut when they were spotted by Mick Robinson for a new TV show at the BBC. Holland left school at the age of 16 to tour extensively around the country for a couple of years, before being signed to Miles Copeland III's I.R.S. Records label, releasing two singles: "While The Going's Good" (produced by Dennis Herring, who has produced Elvis Costello and Ben Folds), and "Tell Me Straight" (produced by Pascal Gabriel, the producer of S-Express, Inspiral Carpets and EMF).

Holland (surname)

Holland is a toponomical surname indicative of ancestral origin in the Dutch region of Holland, the Netherlands, or the English region of Holland (Lincolnshire), or the English towns of Upholland (Lancashire) and Holland-on-Sea (Essex). It is also an Anglicized version of Ó hUallacháin (or Houlihan or Holohan) and is a common surname on the [Beara Peninsula]] in southwestern County Cork, Ireland. It is also found in places where Beara immigrants settled, such as Butte, Montana, and southeastern Massachusetts.

Architecture and engineering

Film, theatre and television

Holland (album)

Holland is the 19th studio album by the American rock group The Beach Boys, released in January 1973. It was recorded in Baambrugge, Netherlands over the summer of 1972 using a reconstructed studio sent from California, and with two Brian Wilson tracks rush-recorded in Los Angeles and added to the album at the last minute. The photograph on the album's front cover is an upside down image of the Kromme Waal, a canal that runs through the center of Amsterdam.

Holland included a bonus EP, Mount Vernon and Fairway (A Fairy Tale), a musical fairy tale written by Brian Wilson about a magical transistor radio who appears to a young prince. Narration was provided by the group's manager: Jack Rieley.

Background

Just as Carl and the Passions – "So Tough" was coming to print, the Beach Boys, at manager Jack Rieley's urging, decided to pack up and record their next album in the Netherlands. They felt the change of scenery would make for some inspirational sessions, and perhaps even snap former leader Brian Wilson out of his deep depression.

Netherlands

The Netherlands (ⁱ/ˈnɛðərləndz/; Dutch: Nederland [ˈneːdərˌlɑnt]) is the main "constituent country" (Dutch: land) of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a small, densely populated country located in Western Europe with three island territories in the Caribbean. The European part of the Netherlands borders Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, sharing maritime borders with Belgium, the United Kingdom and Germany. The largest and most important cities in the Netherlands are Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam. Amsterdam is the country's capital, while The Hague holds the Dutch seat of government and parliament. The port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe – as large as the next three largest combined – and was the world's largest port between 1962 and 2004. The name Holland is also frequently used to informally refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands.

"Netherlands" literally means "lower countries", influenced by its low land and flat geography, with only about 50% of its land exceeding one metre above sea level. Most of the areas below sea level are man-made. Since the late 16th century, large areas (polders) have been reclaimed from the sea and lakes, amounting to nearly 17% of the country's current land mass.