Keen observers of the contemporary scene will suspect that Hunter is a big fan both of John Scofield’s guitar playing and of his acoustic post-Miles groups. Although no organ is listed (Hunter draws a full orchestral palette from his eight-string guitar, including bass lines, and, I guess, electronically effected organ sounds), pieces like Wornell’s Yorkies and Fistful Of Haggis are dead ringers for the retro organ trio sound Scofield essayed on Hand Jive, while Squiddlesticks (actually by saxophonist Ellis) and Elbo Room recall the somewhat more rarefied atmospheres of the Scofield-Lovano quartet. To complete the equation, Hunter and Ellis have a firm grasp of the soloing styles of Scofield and Lovano respectively, Hunter adopting on Scrabbling For Purchase the bubbling, subaqueous chorus sound which has become one of Scofield’s signatures.
Even as a clone of the Scofield band, this would be a satisfying unit, but it’s fair to say that the trio has a number of individual dimensions. Among these are the generally effective jazzing-up (waltzing-up, actually) of Kurt Cobain’s rock song Come As You Are, the use of wah-wah and a more electric funk sound on Bullethead and Hunter’s already mentioned use of eight-string guitar to produce chords and bass lines. We don’t know whether he does this in real time or overdubs, but it doesn’t affect the final outcome, which is a very accomplished and contemporary if not especially individual debut.
Discography
Greasy Granny; Wornell’s Yorkies; Fistful Of Haggis; Come As You Are; Scrabbling For Purchase; Bullethead. Bing, Bing, Bing, Bing; Squiddlesticks; Lazy Susan (With A Client Now); Elbo Room (56.34)
Hunter (elg); Dave Ellis (ts); Jay Lane (d). Plus guests: David Phillips (pedal steel); Ben Goldberg (cl); Jeff Cressman (tb); Scott Roberts (pc). San Francisco, c. 1995.
(Blue Note CDP 7243 8 31809 2 9)
