About the Artist:

Sawyer has performed in Asia, Brazil, Canada, Central America, Europe, The Middle East and throughout the USA. He has shared the stage and/or appeared on numerous recordings with many notable artists including Nnenna Freelon, Charlie Byrd, Oteil Burbridge, Tony Williamson, Jack Wilkins, Jon Metzger, David Murray, (actor) Danny Aiello, (prima ballerina) Marie- Christine Mouis, Scott Ainslee, Ghezzi, Bob Cranshaw, Gongzilla, Willie Pickens, Ed Thigpen, Bill Anshell, Lois Deloatch, Jon Lucien...to name a few. He was a member of the 1992 Philip Morris Superband and has performed with jazz singer Nnenna Freelon at clubs, concerts and festivals worldwide. Other tours include Central America with vibraphonist Jon Metzger (USIA Arts America Program).

His latest album, “Go There” was independently released in May 2007. It charted #18 on XM Radio “Beyond Jazz” (January 2008) and features performances by Oteil Burbridge (Allman Brothers Band) and Kofi Burbridge (Derek Trucks Band). Numerous recording credits include Nnenna Freelon's 2010 release "Homefree", as well as her 1997 Grammy-Nominated release, "Shaking Free" and “Live” (Kennedy Center; 2003). Other recording credits include Lois Deloatch's album "Roots: Jazz Blues Spirituals" (2010); pianist Bill Anschell's "a different note all together", Gary Brunotte's “Manic Moments” and Lois Deloatch's “Hymn To Freedom”. Sawyer arranged & recorded “The Glory Of Love” w/ actor Danny Aiello as featured in the film "Once Around". He has produced recordings for other artists, collaborated with dancers & choreographers, and interpreted visual art through his own compositions.

Sawyer has been a featured artist/clinician/speaker at numerous venues, including UNC-Chapel Hill (NC), UNC-Greensboro (NC), University of Wisconsin (Whitewater), University of South Florida (Tampa), East Carolina University, Magellan School (Raleigh, NC) and The Institute of the Arts @ Duke University (Durham, NC). He's an experienced and active teacher, offering private instruction to guitarists and non-guitarists as well as clinics & master classes. In August 2010, he begins a part-time teaching position at East Carolina University (Greenville, NC) where he will be teaching applied jazz guitar and coaching combos.

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"It’s perfectly understandable why connoisseurs of fine music often refer to Scott Sawyer as a jazz guitarist. It’s because he does the jazz thing so well. He’s an expert at breathing new life into that old graveyard of American Popular Song. By artfully reinvestigating this body of familiar melodies and picking through the harmonic bones, Dr. Scott has resuscitated many a standard.

Jazz, however, is merely one of the many tools within his gig bag. He fingers the blues electric with the authenticity of someone who has lived them. That’s not all. With country-boy affability, he strums and twangs. Chicken-picks. Shucks. Jives. Funks it up. And then breaks your heart with that one poignant love note that’s soft as an angel’s wing.

Like his better-known contemporaries John Scofield & Bill Frisell, Sawyer was weaned on the Beatles, the blues & ‘Bird’. You can hear it in everything he plays, a new kind of guitarspeak comprised of pop, improv and sounds never before heard. It is a language Sawyer uses with authority."---(Joe Vanderford)

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"The ABB will continue what’s being called the “40 Years of Highs and Lows” tour, all part of a 60 date US tour. While in NY, I got to do a gig with Go There, who I recorded with in 2006. Scott Sawyer and Kenny Soule are two of my favorite musicians to play with." - Oteil Burbridge (Chris Jisi, Bass Player Magazine (Jun 01, 2009)

"Welcome to Scott Sawyer, the funk, rock, blues--and jazz-- player...With a preponderance of Sawyer tunes, (GO THERE) is all groove underneath...If you're looking for a pure, hard-line jazz album, this is not it. But if you think it represents a compromise, think again. It's its own species." - Owen Cordle, News & Observer (May 06, 2007)

(on Scott Sawyer “Go There”) I've been a fan of Scott Sawyer's music for years and consider him to be one of the greatest guitarists in the country. That there are so few recordings of him available is one of the music world's great injustices. Compounding this difficulty is that his playing is so damn good in so many diverse styles, which means there are still a lot of CDs to make if the public is going to have an inkling of his gift. Go There is Scott at his genre-busting best. What would you call this? "fusion"? "jazzy jamband"? In the end it doesn't matter: this is just cool music, from the soul, with inventive writing, fantastic players, and heartfelt improvisations. Go wherever you have to to get a copy of this disc. -- Alex Martin

"I remember hearing years ago about "...this guy Scott Sawyer...He's the one guy around here who has a totally cool vibe while being one of the best guitar players in the region." The guy who said that was Brian Dennis and he was right. - John Custer; Producer (Dag, Cry Of Love, COC) "

"I did do one CD with this great guitarist named Scott Sawyer. Its called “Go There”. My brother Kofi played on it and a great drummer named Kenny Soule. These guys are really amazing." - Oteil Burbridge" (badassbassplayers.com (Jun 05, 2007)