Who Was Adam

Filmed live at the Vienna State Opera in December 1983, Jean-Pierre Ponnelle’s elegant staging of Manon captures all the pathos of Massenet’s masterpiece. Adam Fischer leads an all-star cast featuring the incomparable Edita Gruberova in the title role and the brilliant Francisco Araiza as Le chevalier des Grieux. Massenet’s Manon was immensely successful from the outset, and it has remained a hit ever since its world premiere in Paris in 1884.

This CD reissue features guitarist John Scofield (who was then 27) searching for his own sound. Four of the selections from the original LP have Scofield backed by a light funky quartet while two other pieces feature him with three notable jazzmen: saxophonist Dave Liebman, bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Billy Hart.The CD is rounded off by four tunes originally on Scofield's Bar Talk LP but the same criticsm applies despite the excellent trio (with bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Adam Nussbaum) and the stronger jazz orientation.