Nathan’s many collaborations have shaped his musical life. In the early 2000’s, Nathan’s albums “Squire For Hide” and “Sound Travels” were produced in London by Phil Asher (dj/producer). They featured many musicians and collaborators. Nathan recently explored the world of analog acoustic production through his albums “The Poet’s Embrace”, and “Vermillion Skies”, which were released in New Zealand, the UK and Germany by Warner Classics and Jazz. Nathan is a musician who combines his love for jazz harmony and melody with modern production techniques and a dancefloor sensibility. His first album, “Shift Left”, was released in New Zealand in 1994. Later, it was released in the UK by Verve Records. This set the standard for New Zealand’s new style of music and production. Nathan has been a headliner at London’s Ronnie Scotts Jazz Club for more than two decades. He’s also performed as a DJ at numerous international festivals and clubs, both as a solo artist as well as as as a performer. Marlena Shaw, the American soul/jazz icon, has recorded and toured with him on his 2003 album “Squire For hire”. She also appeared on Nathan’s 2007 album “Right Now”, which was released in the UK by Freestyle Records. He performs live in Europe and the UK with her every week since 2001. He also recorded and toured in New Zealand with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. The resultant album, “Life Time”, features Nathan singing on three tracks that were arranged by Alan Broadbent (a Grammy Award-winning arranger and pianist). Nathan is passionately involved in vinyl. He also makes his own album titles and is an avid collector. Original pressings often make their way into his DJ sets. Nathan was awarded the Tui Jazz Album Of The Year in New Zealand three times. His most recent win was in 2014 for “Vermillion Skies”, a small band/ensemble/vocal album. He has also been featured in Straight No Chaser, UK Time Out and UK Music Tech, which had a six-page special about the making of “The Poet’s Embrace”, an analog straight to tape album. A-Sides, a drum and bass producer, is also known as FRank Booker. Jamiroquai, Damon Albarn, Mark de Clive Lowe and Marc Mac from 4 Hero. UK rapper Ty, DJ/Poet Rich Medina, Marco Di Marco, Level 42 keyboardist Mike Lindup and US drummer legend Billy Cobham are some of his collaborators. Nathan Haines is the oldest son of jazz bassist Kevin Haines. He was born on the North Shore in Auckland, New Zealand. Joel was their guitarist brother and they were both playing at major international Jazz Festivals in New Zealand around the mid-80’s. Nathan moved to New York to study in 1991. He was immersed in jazz, hip-hop, and Latin musics. These were all to be a major part of the bands that he would later form and the records that he would create. Gilles Peterson, a UK-based DJ, saw Nathan at Auckland’s famous Cause Celebre nightclub and suggested that he be signed by Polygram Records in New Zealand. Nathan’s groundbreaking 1994 album “Shift Left” was released. It featured live rhythms mixed with analogue synthesisers, vocals and turntable scratching. The album was awarded the New Zealand Jazz Record of the year and was certified Gold. However, the final sales figures were twice that. The album was also released in the UK by the Verve label in 1995. This year, Nathan moved to London. Nathan and A-Sides, a drummer and bass producer (Jason Cambridge), formed Sci-clone in 1997. They made jazz-inflected dance music on successful independent labels like Metalheadz and Reinforced. The duo also gained an international reputation for their unique drum and bass sound that is both musical and hard hitting on the dancefloor. Nathan eventually joined forces with West London-based DJ Phil Asher in the late 90’s. Their two albums, “Sound Travels” (for Chillifunk) and “Squire for hire” (for Chillifunk), remain timeless classics. Nathan began gigging regularly with Marlena Shaw, a US soul legend. She sang the title track of “Squire for Hire”, which was a huge hit and landed the song in the top 10 on the charts. The album also featured the collaborations of Vanessa Freeman (UK soul diva), Damon Albarn (D-2 Gorrilaz) and Rich Medina (US poet), as well as the finest singers and musicians from the UK. Following the album’s success, Nathan appeared on hundreds of records, including Jamiroquai, Mark de Clive Lowe and Reel People, as well as with Marco di Marco, an Italian pianist. A jazz album was also recorded with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, with arrangements by the Grammy Award-winning Alan Broadbent. He also did a sold out concert theatre tour of New Zealand that saw thousands enjoy Nathan’s music and the ninety plus Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Hamish McKeich. Nathan has also performed at many of the top jazz clubs and festivals around the globe, including the North Sea Jazz Festival in New Zealand, London’s Jazz Cafe, Ronnie Scotts and the Tokyo Blue Note. Mike Patto, a long-term collaborator and keyboardist/producer, joined Nathan in 2000. They made many records together, culminating with “The Poet’s Emblem”, an analog straight to tape album. It was released in New Zealand on Warner Classics in 2012 and in the UK by Jazz in early 2013. In late 2012, Nathan and his band performed two sell-out nights at Ronnie Scotts. This was a first time for them to perform together outside of New Zealand. The Poet’s Emblem saw Nathan return to jazz and was one of Nathan’s best releases, showcasing his excellent tenor saxophone play which is prominent on the album. The release was originally meant for vinyl, but is also available digitally. Mike Patto’s recording and production skills shine brightly. The record was recorded directly to a 1950’s Ampex two-track tape machine without any mixing or overdubs. They collaborated once again on “Vermillion Skies”, which debuted at number 5 in the New Zealand National Charts in March 2013. It was also released in Australia. The limited-edition vinyl record also features Nathan singing two vocal tracks and a six-piece horn section. Nathan released “5 A Day”, a co-produced album with Mike Patto, in 2014. It featured beats by Marc Mac (one-half of UK duo 4-Hero), and P-Money, a New Zealand-based hip-hop producer. Also featuring the vocal talents Vanessa Freeman and Kevin Mark Trail. Nathan is currently recording his 11th solo record in Auckland, New Zealand. It will be released in 2018.
