Mike Stern Big Neighborhood (2009) CD Review

[admin]

This CD is a guitar lover's delight! In fact, Big Neighborhood was up for a Grammy as “Best Contemporary Jazz Instrumental Album†in 2010. Anyone who knows me knows I’m not a big rock-and-roll fan, and only someone as good as Mike Stern can steer me towards the type of hard-driving music on this CD. I call it “rock-and-roll jazz†and it is smokin’ hot! A tour-DE-force of recording acumen, this CD features six different lead engineers who recorded in four different studios in three different cities (NYC, LA and Austin). Check it out!

Discuss "Mike Stern Big Neighborhood (2009) CD Review" here. Read the article.

 

[Hobbit]

This is a great album with an A-list of musicians on it. A few of the songs rock, jazz fusion style, but that's OK by me

 

[Stanton]

Stay tuned: Mike Stern will be on Dave Weckl's new CD in the Fall (he's on the "teaser" download tune out now), and there's a good chance I'll review that one later in the year.

 

[jeffca]

It's called fusion

Mike Stern's music is fusion (named for the fusion of jazz, rock and funk that
Miles Davis started with *****'s Brew). Regardless, it is a very good album.

I bought mine from Mike during a break in his show at Chris' Jazz Club in Philly around January, 2010 (he makes some scratch selling and signing them at small shows). His band was Tom Kennedy on Bass and Leon Cordue on drums. I was stunned by the dynamic range of the entire band's playing, but what was also striking was the lack of noise from Mike's Yamaha amps. It was one of the greatest concerts of my life.

 

[Stanton]

It was one of the greatest concerts of my life.

I had a similar experience last year (2012) in Denton, TX (home of UNT). Mike Stern (and Tom Kennedy) sat down at our table during the warm-up act: it was one of the most surreal moments of my life (yes, I got him to sign a few of the CD's I brought with me). He is one of the kindest, most generous people I have ever met. I've also seen Lionel Cordew play a couple of times now, and one of the most bizarre things about him (as a fellow drummer) is that he's a righty who plays drums left-handed!

 

[Hobbit]

I'm not convinced the lead engineering had as much to do with the sound as did the musicians and the groove they put down at the recording session. For instance, the Johnson tracks have a Johnson vibe and the Vai tracks have a Vai groove, etc. I can easily pick them out without even knowing they if they were on the CD. I saw all star band with Mike McDonald and many times when it came his turn to play the band would all of a sudden change their intonations such that the song all of a sudden had a Doobie Bro's sound. When they went to Knopfler they sounded like Dire Straights.