John Scofield
Time On My Hands

A complete musician who reconnects with the warmth of the blues, a guitarist who, like few others, can embrace the entire world of Afro-American music, John Scofield had already amassed an impressive number of high-level collaborations when, in 1982, he joined Miles Davis's entourage, appearing in the credit list of "Decoy".

Perhaps Scofield was the last of Davis's collaborators who managed to achieve international fame after leaving the band. His early albums are heavily influenced by this experience, and they adhere to the fusion standards popular at the time, although his immense executive class is well evident. The turning point, and the start of a personal journey that would soon catapult him to the Olympus of jazz guitarists, came in 1990 with "Time On My Hands", released by Blue Note and produced by Peter Erskine.

Scofield opts for a "pianoless quartet" which allows him to express his improvisational creativity with maximum freedom. Charlie Haden knows how to "speak" with his double bass like no one else in the world, and with the wizard of drumsticks Jack DeJohnette, he forms a rhythmic pair that any jazz musician would want at their disposal. Moreover, Haden's restraint and extreme good taste temper the exuberance of DeJohnette, an hyper-creative drummer who sometimes tends to overdo it. And then there's the ineffable tenor sax of Joe Lovano, with its authoritative and rich sound, equally reminiscent of Rollins and Coltrane, a vivacious and imaginative improviser, capable of establishing a telepathic interplay with the leader.

Scofield possesses one of the greatest qualities of the great jazz musicians: you recognize him after two notes. Listening to his improvisations is like leafing through an encyclopedia of jazz and blues guitar, with dozens of influences miraculously merging into a highly personal style.

While remaining enjoyable and soulful, the music shifts to a level of complexity far different from previous works. The compositions are all exceptional and reveal the guitarist's desire to explore and incorporate as many languages as possible into his music. There's R&B, the artist's old love, in "Farmacology"; but also in the opening "Wabash III", where Haden demonstrates one of his specialties: extracting an excellent solo from a scant cluster of notes.

In the slow pieces, an ironic detachment often emerges, perceivable in the sly rhythm of "Let's Say We Did", or a dry and composed melancholy, as in "Time And Tide" and "Nocturnal Mission". In "Stranger To The Light", set to a Charlie Haden ostinato, one hears echoes of country-rock. "Flower Power", with its elegiac tone, delivers what the title promises, and there's even room for Tex-Mex in the spicy "So Sue Me", which takes and enriches the theme of "Tequila".

But despite many unforgettable titles, the standout here is the wonderful "Since You Asked", where the fragrances of Monk and Mingus can be sensed, magically introduced by the guitar, and featuring a memorable solo by Lovano. Not yet satisfied, our artist closes in beauty, dragging Haden and DeJohnette into the overwhelming funky rhythm of "Fat Lip".

Thereafter, Scofield would plunge headlong into a career nothing short of protean, which includes collaborations with colleagues Pat Metheny and Bill Frisell, recordings with immensely diverse formations, from trio to big band, a return to funk in the records with the Martin-Medeski-Wood trio. And the story continues...

Beyond everything, "Time On My Hands" remains, in my opinion, a fundamental album for getting to know this great guitarist. If we also add that it's available online for sale at 9.90 euros, it inevitably earns the label of "mandatory purchase"!