With his guitar, Bill Frisell sounds like freedom

The Artistry of… Bill Frisell

He sounds like freedom. I saw a scene with him recently on an HBO special called Carmine Street Guitars. The film is a guitar lover’s paradise and Bill Frisell’s simple playing of one of the hand-crafted guitars is a priceless moment. You feel every creative thought processed, acted upon and then artistically allowed to just be a beautiful thing; before you know it you’re just listening to the way I think freedom sounds.

Time seems to stop in a Frisell moment. Artistry takes over and moves you forward to where experiences like this should happen all the time. His sound is eclectic, from folk through jazz and country to Americana. The guitar bends and yields in his hands like he is shaping the sounds with the instrument itself. He just plays it like it’s no big deal, but that’s the Frisell seduction and what makes it so special. It sounds like it is coming from a place of no big deal and then that deal blows you away.

The Artistry of… airs Wednesday evenings on Dinner Jazz with John Devenish.