| Summary: | Before discussing John Abercrombie's performance, it is important to salute the quality of the project "Solos - The Jazz Sessions" designed and produced especially for television by Daniel K. Berman. From this series, we have already presented the episode dedicated to pianist Andrew Hill, followed by the one with Bill Frisell. We note the particularly polished production of the program whose guest is John Abercrombie, where each background image takes on a different color as if there were a symbolic symbiosis with the title played by the guitarist. Although John Abercrombie confides that he never wanted to do a "solo tour," he plays the game here with disarming simplicity while delivering, during short interviews, a few secrets about his playing and his thoughts. Thus, he says in an almost British humor: "in other words, I sometimes try to overplay the instrument." And he also adds the advice he gives to his students: "Writing is improvising, because you have to develop the idea." His ability to improvise is ideally demonstrated on the standard "How Deep Is The Ocean" where he deploys finesse, introspection and sensitivity in a lucid language. Listening to this solitary performance, we understand why John Abercrombie is one of the favorite guitarists of Manfred Eicher, the founder of the ECM label. When John Abercrombie cites the names of guitarists who have influenced his playing, we are not surprised to see that they include Chuck Berry, Mickey Baker, Les Paul, Barney Kessel, Wes Montgomery, and Jim Hall. Philippe Lesage.
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