Stanley Clarke, a legend and towering figure in the world of jazz bass, and his band, came to the Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis, on Thursday, February 27th, and played a brief, but moving musical set. Clarke's band is one of young talent, who are just now finding success, having Clarke as their mentor. Keyboardist Rusian Sirota, from Ukraine, has been with Clarke for some years now. But, guitarist Brady Cohen, and drummer Mike Mitchell, have made their debut with his band, and this could surely launch successful careers for both of them in their own musical endeavors.
There were recognizable tunes from Clarke's catalog throughout the set, but even some of these, were welcome surprises. The show opened, with "School Days", the title track from Clarke's 1976 record of the same name. This number is a true jam out piece and rightfully so. However, on this night, Cohen and Mitchell, as well as Clarke and Sirota, took it to heights that even jam appreciating music fans would find a bit excessive, as was an untitled jam that followed that tune in the set list. Yours truly thought it was going to be something off of one of Clarke's records.
But, indeed it was just an improvisation piece, right off the cuff. Part of it, was in fact, the second track from "School Days", "Quiet Afternoon". Hey, sometimes you just gotta jam, no matter what. After that, came the heavy hitters. "Lopsy Lu", from Clarke's 1974 self-titled debut release, was first, and after the groove of that tune, came the most moving number of the evening... "Song To John". This two part epic was written by Clarke in tribute to saxophonist John Coltrane, one of the all-time jazz greats. Funny enough, some would think it might also be a tribute to the great jazz guitarist John McLaughlin, whom Clarke has worked with, and who played with Miles Davis, and his own Mahavishnu Orchestra. But, Clarke said, "no, not quite", though he did give a shout out to McLaughlin, nonetheless.
"Song To John" saw Clarke switching from electric, to upright bass. Clarke's prowess musically is equally showcased on upright, as it is on electric bass. He has a sound on both, that is a singular tonality, all his own. "Song To John" was the epic of the evening, and was mesmerizing to all fans in attendance, including yours truly. Moving on with masterful pieces, Clarke went into "No Mystery", a Return To Forever tune, and jokingly said of his RTF band mate Chick Corea, "I hope Chick doesn't mind us messing up his tune a little bit." "No Mystery" is another signature number, from the Return To Forever catalog, and no, Clarke and company, didn't make a mess of it at all.
Clarke, and Mitchell, had their respective solos, although, the former of the two, was what moved me. Again, it showed Clarke's phenomenal musicianship and connection to the upright bass. "No Mystery" continued to unfold and paint the musical landscape until the end of the show, before the encore, in which Clarke broke into his jubilant, groovy, and sometimes quirky, number, "Hot Fun" to close out the evening. A great show. The crowd definitely came away pleased, and wanting more, after this one.
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