Song Rig
Wabash III A.M.
John Scofield · Loud Jazz · 1987
Tone Overview
What Makes This Sound Unique
The Loud Jazz album's most atmospheric track — Scofield's blues and country influences come forward here, with a slower, more spacious approach than the dense Still Warm material. The Ibanez and Mesa combination produces a warm, slightly bluesy tone appropriate to the late-night feel the title suggests.
Signal Chain
- 1Ibanez AS200
- 2Mesa Boogie (moderate gain)
Amp Settings
Warm and slightly reverberant — the 3 AM title suggests a late-night, ambient quality that the reverb supports. Slightly more sustain than the brighter Still Warm period.
Technique
How to Play It
Blues-influenced jazz phrasing at slow tempo — Wabash III A.M. shows Sco drawing on country and blues sources for melodic vocabulary, bending notes in ways that jazz guitarists rarely use, and placing phrases with the deliberate timing of blues rather than bebop.
Budget Alternative
Achievable With
AS200 → Mesa at moderate gain → spring or room reverb → practice incorporating string bends into jazz phrase construction: instead of arriving at a chord tone by step or leap, bend into it from a half-step below.
Your Gear
Adapt to My Amp
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