John Scofield

When I first got into jazz — around 1969, I came from playing R&B and Soul in High School. Jazz Rock was in its infancy stage and I was lucky enough to be around to experience the Golden Age of both Rock and Soul and see Jazz embrace that movement while I was trying to learn how to play straightahead Jazz. A lot of my early chances to actually gig were in various Jazz/Rock idioms. I got to play “real” jazz with Gary Burton and Gerry Mulligan but my real first “big time” gig was with the Billy Cobham/George Duke band. We got to play in gigantic concert halls and rock venues for excited people who were not necessarily jazz aficionados, but loved the music.

After that band ended, I stayed home in NYC and worked on playing acoustic jazz with my own groups and people like Dave Liebman. I also started an ongoing musical relationship with bassist Steve Swallow that continues to this day. As a jazz bassist and real songwriter (not just a composer) Swallow has influenced me as much as anyone.

In 1982, I joined the Miles Davis Band, answering the call of funky jazz once again. My stint with Miles made me sure that there really was a kind of music that was both funky and improvised at the same time.

After playing with Miles for over three years and making a few more records of my own, I hooked up with ex-P-Funk drummer Dennis Chambers, and we made a group that really utilized funk rhythms. Dennis and bassist Gary Grainger were masters of that “James Brown/ Earth Wind and Fire/ 70's thing”. It was great having that underneath my tunes.

When I signed with Blue Note Records in 1989, I decided to explore more “swinging” avenues. I got together with my old Berklee School buddy, genius saxophonist Joe Lovano. We had a group and made three albums for Blue Note — four counting a bootleg from Europe — that are probably my very best “jazz” endeavors. Part of that can also be attributed to the magnificent drumming of Bill Stewart, who is as good a musician as I've ever met.

Then I felt the urge to get into a soul-jazz thing. I'd been really influenced by the music of Eddie Harris and Les McCann from the sixties. I invited Eddie to guest on the album Hand Jive. This was about the same time that Larry Goldings entered my music on Hammond Organ. With the collective possibilities of these musicians, I began to allow jazz to blend with New Orleans type rhythms to make the music groove.

Around this period, I also worked and recorded some with Pat Metheny — one of the great guitarists. He and Bill Frisell are my favorite guitar players to play with and listen to. But then there's also Jim Hall and Mike Stern and Jim Hall and John Abercrombie and Jim Hall and Kurt Rosenwinckle and Jim Hall and Peter Bernstein... not to mention Jim Hall. And then there's also Albert King and Carlos Santana and Tom Morello and all the other ones I can't summon the names of right at the moment.

When I heard Medeski, Martin and Wood's record “Shack Man”, I knew I had to play with them. They played those swampy grooves and had a free jazz attitude. These guys are serious conceptualists and are able to take the music to beautiful and strange places. I love what they did on A GoGo. In the last couple of years, I've heard some great young players that remind me often of what it is that I like so much about the music of sixties R&B.

Now I'm able to take that music and mix it with jazz all over again. I'm having more fun playing now than I ever have and I feel like I can finally really learn to play the guitar. Now, after having the chance to play with many of my musical idols — I'm getting inspiration from younger musicians. I'm as excited about writing and playing music as I ever have been.

— John Scofield

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In Pictures

John Scofield Combo 66 at the 2018 Padova Jazz Festival

Album Reviews

Combo 66 by Doug Collette
Combo 66 by Ian Patterson

Album Reviews

Country for Old Men by Maurizio Comandini

Rediscovery

John Scofield: Live

Album Reviews

Past Present by Angelo Leonardi

Live Reviews

John Scofield and Joe Lovano at the Regattabar

Extended Analysis

John Scofield: Past Present

Rediscovery

John Scofield: Quiet

Extended Analysis

John Scofield: Uberjam Deux

Talkin' Blues

Talkin' Blues with John Scofield

Film Reviews

John Scofield: New Morning - The Paris Concert

Extended Analysis

John Scofield: A Moment's Peace

December 26, 2018

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

October 17, 2018

John Scofield: Combo 66

October 09, 2018

John Scofield Quartet: Combo 66

April 25, 2018

Jazz this week: John Scofield & Joe Lovano, Julian Vaughn, Eddie Gomez...

April 21, 2018

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Spotlight on the John Scofield Joe...

December 26, 2017

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

February 13, 2017

Grammy Winners 2017 - Jazz List

December 26, 2016

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

September 23, 2016

Sco: Country for Old Men

February 12, 2016

Sco-Lo: Past Present -- and Future?

December 26, 2015

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

October 06, 2015

Music Education Monday: Pat Metheny and John Scofield on improvisation

December 26, 2014

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

December 26, 2013

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

July 06, 2013

Enter the "John Scofield - Überjam Deux" Giveaway at All About Jazz!

December 26, 2012

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

September 27, 2012

Jazz This Week: Marco Benevento, John Scofield Trio, Matt Ulery's Loom...

April 24, 2012

John Scofield on Brookmeyer

March 28, 2012

Interview: John Scofield

December 26, 2011

Jazz Musician of the Day: John Scofield

Photos (271) Slideshow

Upcoming Shows

Date	Detail	Price
May1Wed	John Scofield Tivoli/vredenburg Utrecht, Netherlands
May6Mon	John Scofield New Morning Paris, France
May11Sat	John Scofield Fasching Stockholm, Sweden
May15Wed	John Scofield Combo 66 12on14 Jazz Club Warsaw, Poland	400 PLN
May15Wed	John Scofield Combo 66 12on14 Jazz Club Warsaw, Poland	400 PLN
May17Fri	Bill Stewart, John Scofield, John Scofield Band, Gerald... Cadogan Hall London, UK
Jun27Thu	John Scofield Space Evanston, IL