Customer Reviews

Quiet

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Arranger Sco's master class. I seldom hear chords like these. Reminds me of Debussy's surreal harmonic spheres. Yet it swings when it has to. A Scofield fan friend of mine said while listening: 'It is surprising how a pyro-heavy can calm down so swingingly'.

This album is an exquisite little gem, which seamlessly bridges Jazz and Classical. To my ears it is one piece of music with 8 or 9 movements, (Steve Sallow wrote the last piece on the album.) In the liner notes John writes that he worked several months on the compositions and arrangements, which in my opinion are inseparable. The heads and solos flow together so smoothly as to be almost indistinguishable from each other, with their long arching melodies weaving a tapestry from beginning to end which is lovely and captivating. I invariably find the melodies stuck in my head hours, or sometimes even days after hearing them. For me, Steve Sallow's solo on "After the Fact" is magnificent, his command in the upper registers being so impressive and his line so melodic that when he finally dives down into the lower register the listener may be caught off guard by the surprise that he is listening to a bass solo. The arrangements and instrumentations, which coax lovely textures from the group at times hearken back to the French school. Some of the movements at times bring to mind Darius Milhoud's "Le Creation Du Monde", which is somewhat ironic, being that the French masters Milhoud, Ravel and Debussy were highly influenced by Jazz, and so we come full circle with the their influence on Mr. Scofield. For me however, the most astounding and wonderful aspect of this music is that the distinction between the written arrangements and the improvisations is blurred to such an extent that they become one, and in their own way transcend some of the limitations of both mediums. If you are in the mood for a relaxing and undulating melodic journey, then I can't imagine not enjoying this music.

This is an amazingly beautiful album, as already stated in the other reviews below. I only would like to add that the beauty also comes from the delicate drumming of both Bill Stewart and Duduka Da Fonseca (the last one is featured on three of the more bossa nova oriented tracks) and the brilliant bass figures of Steve Swallow. They supply Sco with the perfect rhythmical foundation for this album that begs for repeated listenings. Even non-Sco lovers should love this album!

As with all great music, repeated listening unearths new pleasures. Scofield has always been a masterful player and composer--with Quiet he proves an inspired arranger as well. Exquisite melody and harmony pour out of every track with subtle and precise horn arrangements that add the dynamics to make each selection a rich and bountiful feast. Reminiscent of Gil Evans yes, but married to a distinctive guitar style and compositional perspective that accomplishes something fresh and deeply moving. Close your eyes and listen to this one--it is the soundtrack to a sensual and colorful world of heartfelt substance and thoughtful soul.

Surprisingly effective mellow progressions are intricately and sophisticatedly arranged throughout. Scofield is one of the few reliable jazz guitarists around when it comes to viable artistic variety.

I love this CD. Good melodies, good arrangements, and great playing by Steve Swallow and Wayne Shorter. Even though I liked the music right away I didn't get into Scofield's playing on acoustic right away. But now I love it. He plays with a relentless sense of swing, and harmonically he matches what is musically going on perfectly. This CD does it for me no matter what mood I'm in. For many CDs this can't be said.

As with all great music, repeated listening unearths new pleasures. Scofield has always been a masterful player and composer--with Quiet he proves an inspired arranger as well. Exquisite melody and harmony pour out of every track with subtle and precise horn arrangements that add the dynamics to make each selection a rich and bountiful feast. Reminiscent of Gil Evans yes, but married to a distinctive guitar style and compositional perspective that accomplishes something fresh and deeply moving. Close your eyes and listen to this one--it is the soundtrack to a sensual and colorful world of heartfelt substance and soul.

John Scofield dabbles into acoustic guitar and horn sections in "Hand Jive" (1994) and "Groove Elation" (1995), then dives headlong into both for his Verve debut in "Quiet". The results are very satisfying.

Scofield puts an english horn and two french horns in his brass and fronts it with a Latin-tinged nylon-string guitar that grabs your attention through subtlety; a sort of Charlie Byrd-meets-Gil Evans. Not surprisingly, then, the songs featuring Wayne Shorter's tenor sax are reminiscent of the jazz samba records Byrd did with Stan Getz in the sixties, even though Shorter sounds very much like his classic Blue Note self.

You won't find many of the hot guitar licks here that can be found on any other Scofield CD; the compositions and arrangements take the center stage this time. It may take longer for Sco's "traditional" fans to get used to this record and a few songs drag just a little bit, but on its own terms, it is a very fine record.

Few jazz artists have made successful recordings after changing directions away from a successful formula. Like his former boss Miles Davis, Scofield proves (again) with "Quiet" that he belongs in that elite.

John Scofield typically plays with smaller ensembles yet for "Quite"---which is an acoustic set---he goes against the norm and instead of paring down, he expands the pool, drawing upon a variety of sidemen, notably including Wayne Shorter playing tenor sax, Steve Swallow on bass, and Randy Brecker adding trumpet. Drums, French horns, woodwinds, tuba, bass clarinet, and baritone sax round out the sound on various tracks.

The CD starts with two terrific tracks, After the Fact and Tullie, before it begins to fade, and to some degree, meanders during Away with Words. Mr. Scofield and company shine on the two subsequent tracks, Hold that Thought and Door #3, but I find the rest of the CD a bit repetitive and formulaic in comparison to the opening tracks. Nothing here sounds forced nor, on the other hand, does it sound inspired.

Mr. Scofield is a fearless musical explorer and I'm glad he branches out in so many directions. "Quiet" is neither my favorite nor least favorite of his many CDs but it does offer a different experience.

this cd has taken me by surprise. i think it's my favorite sco cd. and i've heard it all. from blue matter to the überjam stuff. but this one is soooo beautiful. it has some amazing compositional aspects to it. the charts he writes for the instruments sounds like a maria schneider meets tom harrell combo....but still being total sco. i strongly suggest this cd. it has really taken me aback and i think that other sco fans should experience it.