John Scofield’s “Ray”jam

John Scofield is an anomaly in the field of jazz. First noticed when legend Miles Davis tapped him for his backing group, “Sco” has achieved Elder Statesman status with the jam-band crowd by working with musicians like Warren Haynes (Allman Bros/Gov’t Mule) and Medeski, Martin & Wood.

The two loopers and Whammy pedal attached to his sizable pedalboard attest to the fact that Sco has never been shy to embrace new sounds and technology. So That’s What I Say, his tribute to Ray Charles, is simultaneously a step forward and backward; rediscovering his R&B roots while refusing to stay in the jazz ghetto.

The night got off to an early start: Sco (wearing a black “reneworleans” T-shirt) and company made a low-key entrance just after 7 pm. “We’re deranging Ray’s music!” Sco announced just after playing ‘I’ve Got a Woman.’

This was definitely not a traditional jazz gig. The grooves were funkier, and Sco has overcome the typical jazz guitarist’s aversion to bridge pickups; his beat-to-hell Ibanez AS-200 semi-hollowbody squawked and screamed as Sco laid into it.

Sco’s backing band, not surprisingly, are a stellar bunch of musicians. Steve Hass (drums), John Benitez (bass), Meyer Statham (vocals/trombone) and Gary Versace (keyboards) all got plenty of chances to strut their stuff onstage. And they were comfortable enough with each other to play the occasional game of “Crack up the other musicians”. But they all knew their place: no upstaging The Man. And Scofield is most definitely The Man. His guitar introduced and closed every song, and despite playing non-stop for almost 2 hours, he always kept things interesting. Not surprising, considering that Miles used to give the young Sco 10-minute guitar solos on gigs.

“When I first heard this song, I thought it was a kiss-off to JFK,” Sco said, when introducing ‘Hit the Road, Jack’. “I was 12 years old at the time, whaddya expect?”

The band played ‘Hit the Road’ fairly straight, with Meyer singing the choruses and Sco playing the verses. The band shifted to a double-time bebop groove for the middle section, and Sco played with more of a traditional jazz sound.

“I brought in John Mayer, a great guitarist, to play and sing on ‘Don’t Need No Doctor’,” said Sco, when introducing the most controversial track on ‘That’s What I Say’.

“You’re better!” yelled an audience member.

“John’s a better singer,” Sco admonished the fan. “He’s a blues guitarist, I’m a jazz guitarist. Neither is better than the other. I love all music … except Latin!” he added, firing a wicked grin at bassist John Benitez.

Sco and keyboardist Gary Versace livened up the tune’s bluesy groove with some playful guitar/B3 sparring. Versace sings his lines as he plays them; it gives his parts a more vocal quality. ‘Georgia on My Mind’ (“One of the most beautiful songs ever”, said Sco) mined softer territory, with Sco playing some Wes Montgomery-style octaves. And ‘What I Say’ developed a Latin vibe, with John Benitez dancing as he held down the groove.

Sco’s band gently moved Ray’s music into jazz territory without disrespecting the original vibe of the recordings. The musicianship kept the musos entertained while the grooves ensured their spouses weren’t bored.

Sco returned for the encore with a bottleneck slide and a blue Gibson ES-335 with the logo taped off (don’t want to mess with that Ibanez endorsement!).

“I just had to start learning slide after hearing Warren Haynes play the shit out of this next song,” Sco said, introducing ‘The Night Time is the Right Time’. Sco showed how much he’s learned, but for once he took a supporting role, and Meyer took the reins off his vocal chops. A fitting end to the evening, and a fine reminder that Ray Charles’ music was ultimately about the song, not instrumental prowess.

Photograph by Sarah Ternoway