Release Date: 4/7/1998 Similar CDs Colin (5 out of 5 stars) "Scofield sounds totally at home in so many musical settings, whether its the (relatively) straightahead live jazz on 2003's "EnRoute" with bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Bill Stewart, or this rollicking funky (and fun) ride from 1998. Here, just when the funk grooves reach meltdown point, Sco and his tighter than tight collaborators Medeski Martin and Wood take it down a few notches and its more of a slow burn. Tunes range in style from the hook-laden, melodic "Jeep on 35" (one member of the band in fact can be heard whistling the melody at a certain point) to the faintly menacing and furiously climactic "Hottentot", which most of my neighbours will also be familiar with by now. Scofield is in a class of his own when it comes to sounding soulful and laid-back and angular and unpredictable all at once (I like to think he'd have hit it off with Thelonious Monk had they belonged to the same era); I think that comes also from the fact that he's not an out-and-out speed demon, trying to bludgeon you into submission with a flurry of notes. If he were a boxer, he'd be one of those ones that wear down their opponent by circling them and picking them off with well-timed, unpredictable combinations and the occasional sneaky blow below the belt. In total control. Great stuff, though definitely a "grower" - I wasn't totally blown away at first myself, so give it a few spins!"