Flat Out (John Scofield album)

The album marks a shift from his later funk-oriented fusion recordings to hard swinging tracks with "almost boppish"[1] solos and a new focus on New Orleans rhythm and blues, covering two songs by The Meters and Huey "Piano" Smith and an original ("In the Cracks") with a second line groove.

The album features Anthony Cox on bass, either Johnny Vidacovich or Terri Lyne Carrington on drums, and Don Grolnick as organist on four of the ten tracks. Grolnick played keyboards on Scofield's 1986 album Still Warm and produced his 1991 album Meant to Be. With Anthony Cox Scofield was part of a recording by Gary Thomas' a few months earlier (By Any Means Necessary). And with Terri Lyne Carrington he first played together on a recording session led by Niels Lan Doky in September 1988 (Daybreak).[2] Johnny Vidacovich "is the quintessential New Orleans jazz drummer."[3] Scofield recorded with him once before in 1988 for Ray Anderson's album Blues Bred in the Bone. Scofield and Anderson also recorded with saxophonist Bennie Wallace on his New Orleans R&B influenced albums Twilight Time (1985) and Bordertown (1987), both featuring Dr. John. Scofield returned to New Orleans-based grooves on his 1995 album Groove Elation and most explicitly in 2009 on Piety Street.

All tracks are written by John Scofield except where noted.

• John Scofield – electric guitar
• Don Grolnick – Hammond B-3 organ (tracks 1, 4, 6, 10)
• Anthony Cox – double bass
• Johnny Vidacovich – drums (exc. 3, 7, 9)
• Terri Lyne Carrington – drums (3, 7, 9)