Did you ever thought "I wish I had seen Jimmy Hendrix play live at least once in my life" ? Then, you should have attended yesterday's Jef Lee Johnson concert at AMR.
I've seen many great guitarists on stage so far - including BB King, Gary Moore, Robert Crey, Mark Knopfler and Andy Summers - but never any of them has reached the level of creativity Jef has demonstrated. His technique is impressive. The speed his fingers move is just supernatural. But that's nothing. Technical abilities are just a tool. What is truly striking is the way Jef puts himself in danger, creates new sounds, innovates every single note. Indeed, most guitarists stay on a "track", like a smoothly oiled locomotive. For instance, BB King is a virtuoso of the pentatonic scales. But he'll never move away form that, or play any chord (he once admitted he sucked at it btw). Jef, on the opposite, always jumps out of the road. Whenever a smooth path appears, he aims at the closest cliff. His fall is quite scary, and a happy ending very unlikely. He switches from clear channel to overdrive kind of whenever. He mixes heavy chords, light as a bird finger picking, muted notes and power chords, stratospheric bends with slammed bass notes. Kneels in front of the amp to get larsen, closes his eyes while his fingers get higher and higher on the fret board, or rubs the E chord with the pick to get that rough sound. He sometimes repeats a sentence several times, altering it slightly every time, as in an attempt to make a point. An attempt that carries him always a little further away. This is clearly total improvisation. I even heard him tell himself "wow, stupid!" when finding himself trapped in a sound corner he was struggling to find the way out. His playing is so original that one often wonders where he goes. But just as a skateboarder on a half-pipe, the higher and crazier the jump, the more impressive and joyful the perfect landing. Because Mr Johnson doesn’t fake it. Neither does he do total nonsense just to be different. He knows it all: rock, blues, jazz, funk, etc. And it’s because he knows where he takes off from, and where to land, that his flight is a delight. Listening to him is like being on a rollercoaster with invisible tracks. It shakes you in all direction, but will eventually bring you back safe and sound after a very enjoyable ride.
The drummer and bass player were great musicians as well. Even if their skills were just great, the most noticeable fact was their pleasure to play together. Their ability to listen to each other, to switch from one universe to another planet of sounds with a simple glance, a hint, a variation of intonation in the lead guitar play, is impressive. I attended a blues concert on Saturday night, and I had to leave the room because the ego of the leader was so fat that his bossing attitude stunk miles around him, and killed any positive vibes that could have come through the band. On the other hand, Jef plays with his band, with mutual respect, amusement and complicity, and you can tell. Each one of them is an accomplished musician. And as good as Jef might be, the other two aren’t scared to make their own point, go their own way. They don’t serve the boss, they put their brush stroke to the musical painting. They suggest new tracks, follow Jef’s amazing play from the distance, or act as a rhythm life line.
Well, as one of the attendee summed it “Watching him play made me stay up all night and practice”. As a conclusion, if Jef comes around you some time in the future, don’t miss him!
