Sunday, May 24, 2009

Trey Wright, Thinking Out Loud, Blue Canoe

Confession: Pat Metheny and Kurt Rosenwinkel, both of whom I've enjoyed live, as well as John Abercrombie, don't really interest me very much with their recordings, although I recognize their excellence as guitarists. Which is why I'm a Bill Frisell guy, I guess. Trouble with Bill is, he gets pretty out there and sometimes it would be nice to listen to some jazz guitar that is more traditional in a Grant Green or Wes Montgomery vein and yet modern and consistently interesting.

Wright's Thinking Out Loud is that kind of session. The songs are diverse, with no one sounding quite like another, and his playing reminds me of Frisell without slipping over the edge, but more in the "feel" of it than in an imitative sense. He's definitely got his own sound. It has enough facets to it that I don't miss the presence of horns, as I do on occasion in jazz guitar trio sets. Bassist Mark Miller and drummer Marlon Patton also are big reasons why this set doesn't come off as hornless. They're as tricky as Wright and the three are seamless playing together. A nice find.

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