John Scofield/Dave Holland: Memories Of Home

It should come as no surprise that guitarist John Scofield and bassist Dave Holland sound so simpatico on Memories Of Home. The two veteran musicians have traveled in similar and familiar circles over the course(s) of their decades-long careers. As the duo selectively recalls touchpoints of their history with their choices of material here, they implicitly map out a future for themselves that extends behind this LP.

At the same time, in light of tours in 2021 and 2024, the two men's choice of studio over stage as the source of a record begs the question of whether these two jazz stalwarts were acting too polite for their own good: were they not pleased with the spontaneous interplay they shared on the road?

Although "Icons At The Fair" has its associations with both Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock, it might well be a self-referential selection, at least based on the playful nature of Scofield and Holland's interaction. In fact, the pair cover a deceptively wide piece of territory in just over six minutes.

In doing so, however, they set a tone of utmost efficiency for the record, demonstrating an innate sensitivity to leaving out the extraneous in both the arrangements and performances. Nevertheless, cuts such as "Meant To Be" are fulsome rather than bare-boned, ripe with fillips such as Scofield's harmonics.

Dave Holland quickly establishes a steadfast walking pattern on his partner's composition "Mine Are Blues." In doing so, he not only supplies a foundation for some of Scofield's most upbeat playing on this LP, but also marks a point of departure for more than one solo excursion of his own.

Still, nothing in Memories of Home is flashy. It is instead tasteful and understated. These are easygoing exchanges, not particularly provocative ones, so the participants reassert rather than expand the complementary nature of their playing, knowing full well they have nothing to prove to themselves, each other or the audience.

It is thus only logical that there are no extended tracks among the nine here. In fact, most are in the five-to-six-minute duration, the one exception an eight-minute ten-second excursion through the esteemed guitarist's "Easy For You:" this number very handily sets up the bassist's title tune as the restful closer of this near-hour program. John Scofield and Dave Holland immerse themselves in each successive piece here, so it is only natural that the transitions are as faultless as the one from "Mr. B" to "Not For Nothin.'

However, the engrossing atmosphere on the former continues apace for the latter (the name of the bassist's 2001 quintet record for ECM), effectively continuing a train of thought begun years before and foreshadowing the creative continuity of these two redoubtable musicians.