At exactly 1:30 that Saturday afternoon, the first band of the day that I was anticipating hearing, took the stage. I knew that after seeing John Scofield’s name on the show itinerary, we would be in for a quality show from the wonderful jazz guitarist himself. What made this performance grow in anticipation, much more so than The Funky Meters, Roots, or Max Creek, was the line-up Scoffield assembled to compliment his talents. Most notable of all was Billy Martin, (drummer from Medeski, Martin, and Wood fame) on the drum kit.
From the first moment passed his fingers over the strings of his guitr, until Billy Martin’s final drum beat….the John Scoffield Summit Project filled the air with crisp notes that deemed better suited for a dingy Cross-Town Jazz bar. Scoffield played with the confidence of a guitar master from the planet Jazz. His best chords were also his lowest. Whereas a rock guitarist pierces the air with loud shrieking lightning, John Scoffield roared through the air with some laid back thunder. His notes were striking enough to notice, but didn’t drown out in any way the sophisticated musicianship of the other players that he had brought together for this festival. Some strikes at the organ often fueled Scoffield to counter with some low chords. Meanwhile bassist would slap at his four strings in tune with Scoffield for several minutes. Their interplay would juke and jab with the crowd until the players would pass the ball off to Billy Martin, who would launch into a masterful drum solo.
For most of the set, Joel and I had gone over into the nearby fields, to throw the Frisbee around. There were mainy points when my eyes would follow the trajectory of the Frisbee. The disc’s path nicely mimicked the music that was going on fifty yards away of the stage. A guitar solo would gradually wind into some piano notes from ______as the Frisbee would begin to curve into its course. Then, a current would sweep through the air and key licks would turn into organ blasts that would ripple the feel of the groove but not alter it. As the Frisbee would be snared down to earth by the intended receiver as Martin and Scoffield togethered creshendoed.
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