John Scofield
East Meets West

TERUMASA HINO. And now don't tell me you've never listened to "Fuji" and "Taro's Mood" (I mention two, but how many others are there that deserve it?)... And in that case, what are you waiting for to rush to those records, to put them on the turntable, to devour them? Because, you know... it's difficult to tell the story of this trumpeter from Tokyo, born in '42, without telling the very story of Jazz in Japan; and without talking about Fumio Nanri, who has been dead for almost 40 years now, yet they still remember him as the Armstrong of the Land of the Rising Sun. It was to him, the elderly Master, that Mr. Hino looked in the '60s, already intoxicated by modal Davis, already in contact with what was happening on the other side of the Pacific. How many substantial records between '70 and '80, and his path that will repeatedly cross with that of Masabumi Kikuchi - a keyboardist like few others in Japan. But by then he was a New Yorker by adoption when the owner of this record contacted him to record his debut work. Just a couple of interventions, nothing more... in "Public Domain" and in the nearly 10 minutes of "V", now in unison with the leader (what cadences, ladies and gentlemen, what phrasing), now as a pure soloist: sharp timbre, mostly - and shrill sounds. After all, if in those years you didn't include a bit of the latest Miles, what were you playing for...?

MOTOHIKO HINO. Same last name as the previous one, you may have noticed. And of course, they're brothers... Younger brother, he, and also less famous, decidedly less: he is behind the drums, his style is discreet but can make an impact when he wants, and his technique reminds me of the session-men of Motown (solos here and there, very tasteful fills, always remarkable groove). He also recorded his solo albums, but more than anything we remember him for the collaborations, so many, really so many... How many Japanese Jazz albums will he have played on in the '70s (besides his brother's, but those count too)...? I won't list them for you, but let the polls suffice (oh yes, those count too: "Best Japanese Jazz Drummer"; and not for one, not for two, but for 15 consecutive years). He passed away in '99.

CLINT HOUSTON. The double bass is the (second) thing I like most about this album. You might say: because you play the bass. Yes, but I play the electric bass, not the "big guitar"... And it's true, but here the double bass sounds vibrant, rough, and full like an electric bass. Perfect recording, technically speaking: you can even hear the fingers sliding, moving from string to string, sizzling from chord to chord. Ah, what a pleasure... You hear him improvising over the 12 bars with endless harmonic variations, you hear him clearly quoting (in that "Public Domain" that opens the dance) Dave Holland's riff in "It's About That Time", monotone on a Db base... It’s him, the late Clinton Joseph from New Orleans, who also boasts two quite good solo efforts: one with Abercrombie and one with Ryo Kawasaki: well yes, he really knew his stuff when it came to guitarists...

JOHN SCOFIELD. Owner of the house...? Really, it's kind of weird to say, since this debut (oh my, 26 years old) was recorded at Hino senior's house: Onkio Haus, Ginza, Tokyo. But he's the main figure, not because it's written on the cover or the spine of the vinyl. In this current album (which is also simply known as "John Scofield", eponymous like many first works, because that's how it was for the first edition) he composes 4 pieces out of 6 and presents a style that still doesn't say much to listeners, but that in a few years will become - to say the least - characteristic. That very refined style, of an innate class, so bluesy, so soul, so typical of someone born and raised with Ray Charles, that style that one is led to associate, even unconsciously, with his Ibanez. Already with Cobham, Mingus, and Burton, sure, but this is where it all really begins (and in November of that same '77, a live performance that will leave a mark): in the typically modal moves of "Public Domain" (binary theme Db/D - guitar/trumpet cadence - solo); in the "lively mood" of "Blues For Okinawa"; among the more difficult and precarious geometries of "V" (live a blast); in the breathless dialogue with Motohiko's drums in "Toco Loco"; amongst the shadows, the very dark atmosphere of "Ida Lupino" by Carla Bley. And the three minutes of "Amy"... a guitarist and his solitude: just a few "whispered" chords, so sweet, essential, to reaffirm WHAT THE BLUES IS - truly.

Ecstasy.