John Scofield and the SNJO

I had the honour of seeing one of my guitar heros in concert last night. John Scofield is one of the most talented and innovative jazz guitarists alive. The fact that jazz legend and genius Miles Davis hired John in the early 1980's speaks volumes. This concert was a collaboration between Scofield, the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra (SNJO) and a number of composers who arranged the music for the orchestra. The first set was 'Loud Jazz'; four pieces penned by Scofield and one by Miles. The second set was 'Electric Miles'; four Miles tunes and one by Scofield. My favorite was Wabash The Third (partly because I can play a few bars on guitar myself, although very slowly and probably incorrectly) and Davis's wonderfully catchy Jean Pierre. It almost has the feel of a children's song. Da da, da da Da. That does not really do it justice. It is so simple but so effective, much like Beethoven's 5th in its simple direct melody. Scottish Saxophonist Tommy Smith conducted the orchestra and also threw in a few blistering solos for good measure. He has a rare set of lungs and he was very impressive but I got the impression that Scofield was the real crowd puller. He was certainly the reason I was there. I am not a music critic and I don't understand the technicalities of music theory or chord formation or improvisation but I just loved watching him play that guitar. It just seemed to work and sound right. I don't really have the words or musical knowledge to better articulate why I love his guitar playing so much, I just do. The SNJO were also very very impressive and I would definitely see them live again. The drummer was excellent and played a couple of solos. He played the drums in a jerky energetic way like he was being electrocuted. The bass player was a odd wee guy who looked like Spud from Trainspotting. It was like someone had just picked him up off the mean streets of Easterhouse or Drumchapel, stuck him in a suit and shoved him on stage. He was very good, to be fair. The lead trumpet dude also gave a dynamic solo, squealing out notes with a bright red face and eyes screwed up like he was badly constipated. But the night really belonged to John Scofield. Great guitarist, he also seemed like a lovely guy. There was a microphone passed between Tommy Smith and John durng the two sets and they had a bit of banter. It was my first jazz concert in many years, and if the brain is a sponge and can only absorb so much information then the same can be said of jazz. It is an intense genre and I can only take so much, but the concert has definitely rekindled my interest in jazz and I will be back for more, that is for certain.