Guitarist goes ‘Blue’ on his latest effort

“What I wanted to do was make a blue record. I don’t mean blues guitar. I mean like Miles Davis … a somber mood throughout,” Cook said in a phone interview.

He was referring to the famous 1959 Miles Davis album “Kind of Blue.” It is considered one of the best, and best-selling, jazz recordings of all time.

Cook tossed out another inspirational album, “Getz/Gilberto,” which in 1964 united American jazz saxophonist Stan Getz and Brazilian guitarist Joao Gilberto.

And there’s the more recent Adele CD, “21,” that got Cook thinking on the same wave length.

	Jesse Cook WHEN: 8 tonight WHERE: KiMo Theatre, Fifth and Central NW HOW MUCH: $20, $25 and $35 in advance at www.ampconcerts.org, at the KiMo ticket office, at Hold My Ticket, 112 Second SW, or call 886-1251 or at the door

“They have that kind of feel where the whole record is lived in one space,” he said.

Cook’s 2012 “Blue Guitar Sessions” has two cuts with vocals, a dreamy version of “I Put a Spell on You” and a poignant “Ne Me Quitte Pas” both of which Emma-Lee sings.

Cook composed most of the 14 tracks on the album; most are instrumentals.

“I said to myself, ‘I’m not sure I can do it.’ As soon as I gave myself permission, the floodgates opened,” he said.

“I wrote a song a day. I went on vacation close to the beginning of (the songwriting spurt). I was feeling guilty about going on vacation, but if you have kids …

“And because I was working too hard, I was feeling guilty about not going on vacation with my family. I decided I could do both. Once I started writing … the songs came effortlessly,” Cook added.

His guitar playing is often described as in the nouveau flamenco vein as Ottmar Liebert is thought of.

But Cook dismissed the description of his playing as narrowly one-dimensional.

“Categorization is difficult for my career,” he said. “It’s not classical or New Age or Latin. I try to take music from different parts of the world, put it together and make music.”

He sees himself as an artist who “learns the music, breaks all the rules and makes something new and compelling …”

Backed by his four-piece band, Cook will be in concert tonight at the KiMo Theatre. It is one of 70 gigs in the United States he is doing this year. He thinks U.S. interest was stirred by the PBS program, “Jess Cook, Live in Concert,” which has aired on more than 50 stations.