"don't worry, Scott's a hired gun and when the shooting starts he will be here and hit his mark!" (Phil Mazarick)
It’s perfectly understandable why connoisseurs of fine music often refer to Scott Sawyer as a jazz guitarist. It’s because he does the jazz thing so well. He’s an expert at breathing new life into that old graveyard of American Popular Song. By artfully re-investigating this body of familiar melodies and picking through the harmonic bones, Dr. Scott has resuscitated many a standard. Jazz, however, is merely one of the many tools within his gig bag. He fingers the blues electric with the authenticity of someone who has lived them. That’s not all. With country-boy affability, he strums and twangs. Chicken-picks. Shucks. Jives. Funks it up. And then breaks your heart with that one poignant love note that’s soft as an angel’s wing.
Like his better-known contemporaries John Scofield & Bill Frisell, Sawyer was weaned on the Beatles, the blues & ‘Bird’. You can hear it in everything he plays, a new kind of guitarspeak comprised of pop, improv and sounds never before heard. It is a language Sawyer uses with authority. (Joe Vanderford 4/98)
Joe Vanderford writes for the Independent Weekly (Durham, NC) as well as other publications...
(on Ed Paolantonio's "Dad's Blues")….Sawyer grabs you on the title cut with soul and intellect, sort of like bluesman B.B. King meeting jazzman Jim Hall---(N&O; Raleigh, NC)
On Ghezzi's debut CD "Taking No Prisoners": Vocalist Ghezzi and guitarist extraordinaire Scott Sawyer pack a solid blues punch on this fine outing... Sawyer delves deep into his blues-soaked Chicago roots, equally at home on rockin' blues or coolly perfect weepers like "Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out."---Gene Hyde (Spectator; Raleigh, NC)
"(Charlie) Byrd played amplified acoustic guitar, Sawyer electric guitar. As an accompanist, Sawyer subtly shadowed Byrd. As a soloist, he paced himself thoughtfully and showed much rhythmic variety. He occasionally evoked Wes Montgomery and Jim Hall...throughout the concert, Byrd was a generous leader, swapping solos and phrases with Sawyer"...)---Owen Cordle (N&O; Raleigh, NC)
"A thoughtful improviser, Sawyer selects notes carefully from among the many that lie beneath his fingers. Like master trumpeter Miles Davis, who punctuated his solos with pockets of emptiness, Sawyer lets each note find its own gravity before moving on to the next. But just when you think you've got him nailed as an aw-shucks guitarist who picks unobtrusively in the shadows, one listen to Stream reveals Sawyer's alter ego: a boisterous blues man who honks nasty and loud... "Blue Diner" jolts like a boiling cup of coffee."---Joe Vanderford (The Independent Weekly; Durham, NC)
"There is refinement in his ability to develop, bend and restructure a line. His compositions and extrapolative improvisation insinuate themselves into your mind.......Sawyer's NC sideman are as cogent and hip as their more nationally recognized counterparts."---Owen Cordle (N&O; Raleigh, NC)
"(Sawyer) obviously enjoys the bop and Coltrane-style free improvisational genres. On those tracks where he uses a sax, he lets the horn player lead with good effect.....there are a pair of selections which I've always felt were the guitar's forte-a gentle ballad and a melodic piece that builds in intensity with each successive pass. He uses each to effectively demonstrate his own strengths."---Paul Matthews (CADENCE)
"The album's title brings to mind third stream jazz, in this instance mixing electric guitar with acoustic instruments to invent compositions with rock, straightahead, and new music elements. In The Stream is an engaging yet uncompromisingly provocative effort for the serious jazz listener."---Wayne Self (JazzSouth)
"This is meaty, modern, modal stuff. Key is Sawyer's playing: No strummy sloshing around here; it's dead-on, down to the last well-placed blue note. This is an adventuresome group."---Dean Smith (Charlotte News & Observer)
From 1982-1996 guitarist Scott Sawyer spent much of his time in the jazz & improvised music trenches. Since then, he has enjoyed a steady return to his rock & blues roots via Go There, Ghezzi, Mel Melton and others while continuing to explore the jazz tradition & beyond. Scott’s latest album, “Go There†was released in May 2007 and features performances by Oteil and Kofi Burbridge.
Scott has performed in Asia, Brazil, Canada, Central America, Europe, The Middle East and throughout the USA. He has appeared on numerous recordings (jazz, blues, pop, rock and film), instructs music/guitar students and produces music recordings. He's collaborated with dancers & choreographers and has interpreted visual art through his own compositions. From southside Chicago blues bars to prestigious venues and major festivals around the world, Scott has shared the stage or appeared on numerous recordings with many notable artists including Nnenna Freelon, Charlie Byrd, David Murray, actor Danny Aiello, prima ballerina Marie-Christine Mouis, Scott Ainslee, Delbert McClinton, Bob Cranshaw, Ron Carter, Bill Anshell and Jon Lucien. His groups have opened for Toots Thielemans, Kevin Eubanks, Buddy Rich & others. Scott was a member of the 1992 Philip Morris Superband and has performed with jazz singer Nnenna Freelon at clubs, concerts and festivals worldwide. In 1985, he toured Central America with vibraphonist Jon Metzger (USIA Arts America Program).
Scott has appeared on numerous recordings including (vocalist) Nnenna Freelon's 1997 Grammy-Nominated release, "Shaking Free" (Concord Records) and “Live†(Kennedy Center; 2003). Other credits include pianist Bill Anschell's "a different note all together" (Accurate Records). He has also arranged & recorded music for film (including "Once Around" w/ actor Danny Aiello).
"Blue Diner", a contemporary ballet choreographed by Adam Miller (set to Scott's composition "Blue Dinerâ€) premiered 5/94 at City Center Studios in NYC. Scott has performed it live-onstage with dancers including prima ballerina Marie-Christine Mouis (Paris Opera Ballet, Nureyev & Friends) at Ballet Group International's Inaugural Concert (Durham, NC--5/94).
Scott has been a featured artist/clinician/speaker at various venues including UNC-Chapel Hill (NC), UNC-Greensboro (NC), University of Wisconsin (Whitewater), University of South Florida (Tampa), Magellan School (Raleigh, NC), The Institute of the Arts @ Duke University (Durham, NC) and Chapel Hill High School (Chapel Hill, NC). He continues to work with a limited number of music/guitar students.
www.scottsawyer.net