I Blame Mike Stern

I've been a music fan long before I can even remember.  My parents told me stories of how I used to dance and bounce around to just about any type of music I heard when I first began to stand on my own.  Whether it was from the television, radio, or tunes that my brothers may have been listening to, I apparently had a great affection for music.  My first real memory of music came from my older brother's record collection, which consisted of KISS, early rap and hip/hop from the likes of Grandmaster Flash and Furious Five, Kurtis Blow, Afrika Bambaattaa, Sugar Hill Gang, etc., old 45's of various artists ranging from Kool and The Gang to The Manhattan Transfer.

As I began to get a little bit older (around the age of 13) and my tastes changed, I was introduced to the likes of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Santana, and all of the classics.  I dove head first into all of that stuff. 

It wasn't too long after that I knew I wanted to learn how to play guitar.  So, I saved my nickels and dimes and bought an electric guitar and amp and learned to play.  The guitar was another one of those things that I dove head first into and really wanted to master.  That and the fact that both my father and brother told me I had wasted my money and that I would give it up after about two weeks motivated me to no end.  Well, I didn't give it up and here we are 30+ years later and I'm still playing and playing every day no less.  

I went through my formative years learning licks by all of the greats and even taking inspiration from the popular alternative music of the day.  By the time I finished high school and moved on to college things really began to open up.  To say that I was sheltered musically, and socially for that matter, would be putting it lightly.  Once I arrived at college I was introduced to different cultures and with that came different music.  I heard world music for the first time.  I heard classical music.  I heard chant.  I was loving every second of it too.

After college, somewhere between 1999 and 2000, I was living in Albuquerque, New Mexico and working at a used instrument store.  This guy that I worked with brought in the new Mike Stern album, Play.  He put it on the sound system and I was blown away.  I couldn't take my ears off of it.  I was like, "Who is this again???"  He proceeded to make me a copy and I wore that thing out for weeks.  John Scofield and Bill Frisell made appearances on the album, which didn't hurt.  Honestly, to this day, it's still my favorite Mike Stern album.  Not only did my friend introduce me to Stern, but I found out about Jaco Pastorius, Pat Metheny, and others from him.    

Granted, neither Stern nor Metheny would be considered "traditional" jazz in my opinion, yet I at least had been given a slight peek through the keyhole at it.  I had never been exposed to guitar players that sounded and used lines like that.  It was just so far removed from what I had been listening to and what I had cut my teeth on that I was deeply intrigued.  I began to read and listen to other jazz albums which eventually led me to discover that Stern had once played with Miles Davis.  Yes, I know, it's almost sacrilege to think I didn't know who Miles Davis was until then, but at least I was learning.

I soon began absorbing jazz and taking inspiration from it far more than I did from any other style.  There was just something about it.  I was finding new stuff every day.  It was like it was endless.  There was no bottom to this well.  Maybe because no one else I knew listened to it and I felt that I was somehow privy to this new, undiscovered, subculture or something?  Maybe it was because I had found a treasure trove of music that was totally fresh to my ears even though it had been recorded long before I was even born?  I soon found that I was focusing my attention less on guitar players and more on the other instruments.  Not only was jazz changing my musical tastes but it was also leading my ears to focus on other aspects like dynamics, tones, timbres, arrangements, interplay, etc. a lot more than I had before.  That in turn transferred to my playing.  I began exploring scales and passing tones that I had never previously used.  It got me out of a rut and, by default, made me a more versatile player.   

I can truthfully say that I'm better off having gotten into jazz and even though I will continue to be exposed to new and fresh music every day and take inspiration from many genres I have a hard time envisioning anything capturing my emotions as well as jazz does.  I'm now a jazz fanatic for life thanks to my friend...   and Mike Stern.

As always, thanks for reading everyone.  I sure hope you enjoyed it.  Tune back in next time to see what we might have on the smoker. The Jazz BBQ: Where we are always cookin' up some tasty tunes and discussing the wonderful world of jazz.

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Posted to Jazz BBQ IN THE All About Jazz GROUP
Read more posts by Scott Shrewsberry

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About Mike Stern