Mike Stern: Between The Lines (1996)

Track List

1. Sunnyside
2. The Vine
3. Wing And A Prayer
4. Lose The Suit
5. You Never Know
6. Tell Me
7. With A Twist
8. True Enough
9. Pages
10. Bait Tone Blues

Introduction

Let's establish one thing from the start: Mike Stern is one of the greatest jazz guitarists of our time. He is unique stylistically, musically, and technically. By the time this CD was released, Stern had enjoyed ten years of both critical and commercial recording success. What sets this one apart for me is the basic band used for the sessions: Dave Weckl on drums, Jeff Andrews on bass, Jim Beard on keyboards (who also serves as producer on this and many other Mike Stern projects), and Bob Malach on tenor saxophone. As usual, all songs are written by Mike Stern with a reasonable balance of up- and down-tempo grooves.

Audio Quality

This CD features outstanding recording quality throughout. Nearly every solo, whether it be guitar or sax, is a tour de force. There's only one track I really don't like, and that's the last one (Bait Tone Blues). The set begins with the driving latin/rock groove of Sunnyside. Checkout Dave Weckl's slick stick work on The Vine. Wing And A Prayer is a nice ballad with a beautiful melody (doubled on sax and guitar). You Never Know alternates between a hard-driving rock and laid-back blues groove. The next two cuts (numbers 6 & 7) are the only two featuring an alternate (but equally impressive) rhythm section: the great Dennis Chambers on drums and Lincoln Goines on bass. Both are long-time Mike Stern sidemen. Tell Me may be one of my all-time favorite Mike Stern ballads, and With A Twist features an interesting drum groove along with some nice organ work. Back to the original band, Pages is on my all-time favorite Mike Stern playlist, and I can never get enough of the out-chorus sax solo. Also, the interplay between electric guitar and acoustic piano is special. As you can guess, this is an outstanding set of music, top to (almost) bottom!

Summary

While I like virtually all of Mike Stern's work, I think this is (narrowly) his best CD from the 1990's. The band, writing, and production quality are all first-rate, and there's over 70 minutes of music on the CD! You can't go wrong with this one, so put it on, sit back, and enjoy some great fusion jazz.