Mike Stern’s Echoes and Other Songs is a celebratory toast to overcoming adversity. While it doesn’t necessarily mark new ground in fusion, it is significant for several reasons. Despite career-threatening injuries in 2016, where Stern broke both arms and still deals with lasting nerve damage, he has continued to play live. Yet this is a comeback, as he has not been in the studio much in the interim.
There was a palpable chemistry between Stern, Chris Potter, and Christian McBride who played together, likely for the first time in McBride’s Jam Jawn at 2022’s Newport Jazz. So, in a sense, having the three gather in the studio for this release seemed inevitable. They play with the exuberant joy of being reunited. One could also dub the album a celebration of life for Stern’s keyboardist, friend, and longtime producer for thirty years, Jim Beard, the fusion mainstay who also played with Steely Dan, John McLaughlin, Wayne Shorter, and many others. This is Beard’s last recording as he passed away in March this year. He plays his signature keyboards and synths on all tracks and produced the record. The album also marks the 71-year-old Stern’s debut for Mack Avenue Records.
The six-time Grammy-nominated Stern has long straddled the ground between jazz and rock as he does here, weaving in African and gospel influences, leaving room for free improvisations. The album stays consistently uplifting, powered by those mentioned and drummer Antonio Sanchez, who together play on eight of the eleven tracks, all composed by Stern. Sanchez and McBride, who plays primarily electric bass here, were once the rhythm tandem for guitarist Pat Metheny, so they are in their comfort zone.
The opener, “Connections,” which begins with Leni Stern’s plucked ngoni, soon soars to synth and guitar lines as McBride and Sanchez are busy in the engine room, making way for a high-octane Potter solo, which then inspires the quintet to even higher heights, culminating in an explosive finale. By contrast, “Echoes” glides smoothly and melodically, with Potter again bringing the fiery solo amidst gorgeous unison riffs from Stern, Beard, and Potter. The bluesy “Stuff Happens” features McBride’s electric bass in a brief opening solo.
There are bluesy hues in Stern’s playing throughout, with his overdrive pedal always handy for his stratospheric excursions. The funky, fast-paced, at times bop-like “Where’s Leo” is appropriately keyboard-centric as it likely nods to the keyboardist Leo Genovese, who plays in Leni’s band. The core quintet exhibit their melodic gifts on the ballad “Gospel Song” with McBride on acoustic bass and Beard on acoustic piano, lending a lighter feel to the overall sonics as is true in the mid-tempo “Climate” and the infectious closer “It Could Be” that has Stern, Potter, and Beard trading lines beautifully. The unpredictable “Crumbles,” played in distinct sections, runs the gamut from dense fusion to ethereal tones to pure melody.
The funky “Space Bar” is the first of three from Bona, Chamber, and Francheshini. Bona adds vocals to the harmony-rich “I Hope So,” which is also imbued by the saxophonist’s switch to soprano. Bona‘s vocal on the infectious “Curtis” blends gorgeously with the ensemble, inspiring Stern to add his own vocal harmonies.
The journey back from his injuries continues to be difficult for Stern, but he hasn’t lost his trademark chops. With the help of doctors, his wife Leni, and musician friends, he’s devised a way to hold his pick with wig glue and tape. Although he’s frustrated with no longer being able to use his fingers, the uninformed listener can scarcely, if at all, notice the difference. This is top-shelf fusion, helmed by a group of heavyweights. Echoes and Other Songs is not just a return; it’s one of Stern’s most vigorous efforts and a fitting swan song for the late Jim Beard. Turn it up and bask in it!
