A Jazzy Interpretation of the Blues

Let me start this entry by saying that Bill Frisell is an amazing guitarist. He is an impassioned musician who has been studying music since he was a child. He took up the guitar when he was eleven, inspired by an older friend. Early on his learning he was inspired by rock ‘n roll, particularly the surf sounds of the Ventures and the Astronauts. During his teenage years he was listening to blues artists such as Buddy Guy and Junior Wells and popular rock music artists such as Frank Zappa, Jimi Hendrix, and James Brown. He studied the clarinet (which he had been playing since eight years old) with the Denver Symphony.

Not until he was eighteen did he begin to appreciate and study jazz, particularly that of Charlie Parker, Jim Hall, and Bill Evans. He was an avid learner who became fanatical about the music and the  guitar’s place in jazz from that point. He blends all of his influences (rock, country, blues, jazz, etc) into the records he records. He has collaborated with a number of music artists over his long career. His record Blues Dream is a masterful mix of all of his influences and one of his more critically-acclaimed records.

#119 – Bill Frisell, Blues Dream (Metascore = 86)

When you hear the opening notes to “Blues Dream”, my immediate reaction is the sound resembles a cold, dark scene in a Western. The trumpeter (Ron Miles) is trying to extend the opening notes as long as he can (you can hear the strain to keep the notes going) while sliding notes are played on a steel guitar (maybe the resonator). Frisell bends the strings on his guitar in country western jazz sound. The rest of this short track plays off this theme. “Ron Carter” changes things to a jazzy funk number.

When I have listened to Frisell records in the past, his tone has always had a feeling of openness, of being all around you. You can hear this in “Pretty Flowers Were Made for Blooming”, which sounds like a traditional folk song that has been reinterpreted in a jazzy medium. (All songs were composed by Frisell.) “Pretty Stars Were Made to Shine” continues this theme (and is one of my favorites from the record). Frisell’s way of using effects on his guitar gives this omnipresent sound life. The other aids in creating this effect are the musicians, particularly Greg Leisz, who plays the steel guitars (pedal steel, National steel, lap steel, and mandolin) and provides critical depth in each of the songs.

The central reason I think this album received the critical popularity it did is Frisell composed these songs around a central theme. To me, the central theme is the opening track, “Blues Dream”. Much of the music that follows is tied into the sounds on that track. The two tracks “Where Do We Go?” and “What Do We Do?” continue this theme, but both are unique in how the musicians work around this theme.

Do I recommend this record? If you like jazz music or you like instrumentals, I think you’ll find some great qualities in this record. The songs are all ambitious and interesting, but at times I found myself getting a little antsy.