Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Mike Stern: Voices
Mike Stern: Voices
On first listen, Voices is highly evocative of the Pat Metheny Group, due largely to some of Stern’s guitar tones, the songs’ atmospheric textures, and the uplifting vocals of Richard Bona, Philip Hamilton and Elizabeth Kontomanou. Eventually, however, Stern’s own personality as a guitarist and composer emerges and the Metheny comparison becomes moot. His fleet single-line soloing on “One World” recalls his best work with Miles Davis in the 80s. Kontomanou and Bona are great assets on that particular track, their vocals positively life-affirming. On tunes like “Slow Change”, the guitarist’s tone gets so close to Kontomanou’s vocal pitch that his lines come off as a seamless extension of her singing. The exchanges between Kontomanou and Hamilton on “Leni’s Smile”, dedicated to Stern’s wife, are warm and wonderful.
One aspect of this disc which sets it apart from so much other world-fusion is that the drums and percussion generally take a back seat to everything else. Not that Vinnie Colaiuta and Dennis Chambers become anonymous; they simply stick to the rhythmic function instead of poking their heads out front as many “world music” drummers are required to do. Jim Beard’s airy keyboard timbres tend towards the smooth at times, but usually this isn’t a hindrance to the music’s drive. Saxophonist Bob Franceschini appears on three tracks, and his cool contribution to “Still There” brings to mind Jan Garbarek with Keith Jarrett’s quartet. The most exotic moments come in the final track, “Way Out East”, which gives Turkish percussionist/vocalist Arto Tuncboyaciyan and guest tenor man Michael Brecker room to wail. All in all, one of Stern’s most consistently intriguing discs to date.
FOLLOW Todd S. Jenkins
and get notified whenever a new article published.
I am an author and former contributor to All About Jazz, Down Beat, Route 66 Magazine, Signal To Noise and American Songwriter.
Track Listing
One World; The River; Slow Change; Wishing Well; Still There; Spirit; What Might Have Been; Leni
Personnel
Mike Stern
guitar[Collective:] Stern, guitars; Richard Bona, vocals, bass, kalimba; Elizabeth Kontomanou, Philip Hamilton, vocals; Bob Franceschini, saxophone; Lincoln Goines, Chris Minh Doky, bass; John Herington, 12-string guitar; Jim Beard, keyboards; Vinnie Colaiuta, Dennis Chambers, drums; Arto Tuncboyaciyan, percussion.
Album information
Title: Voices | Year Released: 2001 | Record Label: Atlantic Jazz
About Mike Stern
Tags
PREVIOUS / NEXT
Mike Stern Concerts
Become a Sustaining Member
Since 1995, All About Jazz has championed jazz as an art form and supported the musicians who create it. Over three decades, it has grown into one of the world's leading jazz resources, serving hundreds of thousands of readers, musicians, presenters and industry professionals each month.
Help Build the Future of All About Jazz
Your support helps us continue building All About Jazz for the next generation—expanding our editorial coverage, preserving jazz history, developing new community features and creating better ways to discover the music and the people behind it.
Become a sustaining member for as little as $20 per year and you'll immediately enjoy an ad-free experience along with access to subscriber features and future articles for a full year.
Together, we're not simply sustaining All About Jazz—we're building its future. Thank you for being part of the journey.
