Back in the 1970s, I was never a fusion head. In the very early years of the decade, when I was still in high school, I was more into soul-jazz organ combos on the Prestige and Atlantic labels, the horn-soul bands of Oakland, Calif., and legacy jazz artists, adding a deep dive into disco starting in 1974. [Photo above of Mike Stern by Sandrine Lee]
Over the years, however, I've grown fond of jazz-rock and fusion, but selectively. I never fell for the monotonous mysticism of psychedelic fusion (Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, etc.), fusion light or fusion's cousin, progressive rock. Instead, I gravitated to fusion guitarists such as Larry Coryell, John Scofield, Pat Metheny and Mike Stern.
Mike always had the soul of a rocker but with the overlay of jazz improvisation and the instrumental vision of an orchestrator. There was little fat on the bone with Mike, no wheel-spinning or solos that ate up entire sides of albums. He played with a graceful, edgy economy during his jazz-rock adventures and that sat well with me.
Now Mike is out with a new album, Echoes and Other Songs (Mack Avenue). I love it. Each song is different, and yet they are interconnected with a taut energy dipped in rock, jazz and soul. Which isn't surprising. I interviewed Mike at length in July 2022 (go here):
JazzWax: How did you come to jazz?
Mike Stern: My mom played jazz records at home. Then I wanted to learn how to play jazz on my guitar. So I took some of her records to my room. She had a Herbie Hancock record and a couple Miles Davis albums and a bunch of others. I got lost in myself right away playing along.
JW: Soul was a big deal for you, too?
MS: For sure. I listened to a lot of soul on the radio. But I was into everything. What’s special about the guitar is that it turns up in so many different kinds of music. Many guitarists tend to be more eclectic than other instrumentalists. I mean, you can hear the guitar in classical, jazz, rock, pop, country and soul and other forms. This forces you to be more open-minded about letting in influences.
With Mike's latest recording, you need to listen to the entire album, from start to finish. Each song is different, and hands off to the next. Some are hard driving and many are soft. Taken together, they wind up projecting as a jazz-rock symphony. [Photo above of Mike Stern by Sandrine Lee]
For me, my entry to fusion and jazz-rock came in the fall of 1974, during my first semester at college. So this album, with the feel of autumn approaching, is both uplifting and introspective. The sound of Boston's restless skies, a stiff wind and skittering dry leaves.
The tracks (all composed by Mike Stern):
- Connections
- Echoes
- Stuff Happens
- Space Bar
- I Hope So
- Where's Leo?
- Gospel Song
- Crumbles
- Curtis
- Climate
- Could Be
The musicians:
- Mike Stern - electric guitar (all tracks), backing vocals (track 9)
- Chris Potter - tenor saxophone (all tracks except 4, 5, 9)
- Jim Beard - acoustic piano (all tracks), keyboards
- Christian McBride - electric bass (tracks 1, 2, 3, 6, 8), acoustic bass (tracks 7, 10, 11)
- Antonio Sanchez - drums (all tracks except 4, 5, 9)
- Leni Stern - ngoni (tracks 1, 5, 8)
- Arto Tunçboyacian - percussion (all tracks except 6, 7)
- Richard Bona - bass guitar (tracks 4, 5, 9), vocals (tracks 5, 9)
- Dennis Chambers - drums (tracks 4, 5, 9)
- Bob Franceschini - soprano saxophone (track 5), tenor saxophone (tracks 4, 9)
Even if fusion was never your bag in any form, you'll dig this album. It won't bite.
JazzWax: You'll find Echoes and Other Songs (Mack Avenue) here and at streaming platforms. The start of the album playlist at YouTube is here.
JazzWax clips: Here's Could Be...
Here's I Hope So...
And here's Connections...