Review Summary: The right of self-defense.
The jazz trio is often referred to as the piano trio.
The rudimentary backbone of any jazz outfit is an amalgam of bass and drums. Consequently, it’s no wonder why when it pertains to trio variations, the piano usually ranks as the first choice for harmonic clarification: to accompany, expand and conduct the rhythm section. With no brass or woodwind to provide melody and linear notes from the bass clef longing for company, piano, as a jack of all trades yet not necessarily master of none, can consolidate harmony as well as contributing towards the rhythmic and melodic interplay.
The guitar has been a different story, especially when the player is dealing with jazz context: form and prerequisites. At first glance, just like a piano, the guitar is of a polyphonic nature or in layman’s terms--the guitarist can play a single or a bunch of notes at the same time. So why is it that the swap between these two instruments won’t constitute a simple matter? Why even today and although the guitar trio has been experimented upon since the days of Wes, musicologists of the jazz genre agree that a trio with the six strings at the harmonic forefront provides an area still open for exploration?
Truth be told, jazz ensembles have always been a bit snobby towards guitarists. During the early days of the genre this could be attributed to the lack of amplification; the guitar could never compete in an acoustic environment against the predominate decibels of melodic brass and wind instruments or the aforementioned black and white keys. When it was utilised, it did so filling the shoes of a background rhythmic stooge. Furthermore, the morphology of the fretboard makes music appropriation a cryptic process for the guitarist. Usually, piano players have been more competent as musicians, conductors, harmony connoisseurs and practitioners; all valuable credentials in the eyes of their bandmates, and as described in the first paragraph--perks even more relished in the exigent trio environment.
As a result of the above, the guitar developed various inferiority syndromes towards other jazz instruments. During the era of amplification the misjudged instrument channelled its frustration into endeavours taking it further away from a troubled youth, and managed to find its place as the most utilised and recognized instrument in contemporary music from the 50s onward. Simplified versions of popular music, which were stripped of the theoretical and harmonic intricacies jazz carries--rock n roll, rockabilly, hard rock, punk, metal, pop, grunge--could not have happened without the amped version of the guitar. The brave few, who had chosen an affiliation with the six strings along jazz, were left to represent the guitar within the idiosyncrasies of the great American art: the amplified return, a reconciliation trip back home to meet brothers and sisters still imbued with scepticism about what a sibling went astray could provide.
Pat Metheny has been described numerous times as a follower and the continuator of Montgomery, Jim Hall or Joe Pass. He is one of the most successful guitarists under the jazz label. In all honesty, one could make arguments against the first sentence of this paragraph, if it weren’t for some efforts maintaining a certain distance from the fusion safety his Pat Metheny group provided. Pat Metheny’s abilities on traditional jazz are better witnessed in the various trios, duets or solo projects throughout his career. “Question and Answer” forms a prime reference among those. Tunes ranging from Miles Davis’ “Solar” to Kerns’ “All the things you are” seem a smart move to accompany the originals, as the compositions are well esteemed and recognized; however, according to Jazz standards legislature--the players who constitute and expand the song structure are always more important than the structure itself, thus it’s the one hour improvisational, no overdubs, cerebral yet accessible collaboration of Metheny with Dave Holland on bass, and Roy Haynes on drums, elevating the tunes present in this record.
In conclusion, I will not risk a fine or being reprimanded by stating that this 1989 album merits a place amongst the top jazz albums ever recorded, nor am I arguing against the greatness of piano trios the likes of Evans or Mehldau conducted. Nonetheless, for what it’s worth, Question and Answer can provide a valid musical case... advocacy for the guitar variation or auditory Res judicata on why the jazz trio shouldn’t be shamelessly referred to as the piano one.
