The ongoing collaboration between the jazz guitar legend John Scofield and the adventurous jazz-rock trio, Medeski, Martin & Wood continues today with the release of Juice. This is their third effort together; an ever-changing musical dialogue that began with the 1997 release of A Go Go.
This time out, the quartet sought common ground in exploring the rhythms of the African diaspora, including sounds from Brazil and the Caribbean and how they intertwine with jazz. A Go Go was all compositions by Scofield and 2006’s Out Louder was an exercise in collective co-improvisation.
The album includes four cover songs including three very well-known tunes from the rock ‘n’ roll canon.
Scofield said, “’Sunshine of Your Love’ was completely deranged by Martin and Wood.” And indeed their 11-minute version of the Cream classic is barely recognizable. The song heads into a dub direction with a wicked bass line.
Other covers given new life on Juice include Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’” and The Doors’ “Light My Fire.” Jim Morrison’s iconic vocal is rendered as a blues by Scofield’s rollicking, stinging guitar lead.
John Medeski claims that the album “was easy to make.” But from the sound of this latest collaboration from these great musicians, the music must have been percolating around inside their brains for some time.
