Simone Gubbiotti

During my own musical journey as a jazz guitarist I once had the luck to meet my absolute hero Wayne Shorter. The meeting happened back stage just prior to his last concert at Umbria Jazz Festival and despite my unannounced presence he was very gracious. One thing he shared with me during our conversation was that he believed one of the most difficult things in life is to find people who share the same vision. I suspect he was referring to life in general and of course, this also relates to music.

“Fig free” is the sixth album by the Polish guitarist Przemyslaw Straczek who has already notched up a remarkable touring history crossing the continents of Europe, Asia and South America. When I first listened to this album I immediately noticed three key aspects. The first thing I noticed is that the CD is entirely built around original compositions, it’s a choice that I respect deeply for a number of reasons. How many times are we as musicians asked to play something the audience knows?

Many years ago I composed a song called “Una lunga conversazione” ( A long conversation) dedicated to a beautiful young lady. We used to talk a lot on the phone and even though nothing ever happened in terms of relationship, I think we developed a strong and intimate connection. I have the same feeling listening to Saso Poposky’s latest album “Fallen Land”.