Steps Ahead

Steps Ahead
Steps Ahead
Origin	New York City
Genres	Jazz fusion
Years active	1979–present
Labels	Elektra/Musician, NYC, Jazzline
Members	Mike Mainieri; Bill Evans; Steve Smith; Tom Kennedy;
Past members	Michael Brecker; Don Grolnick; Chuck Loeb; Eliane Elias; Bob Berg; Warren Bernhardt; Bendik Hofseth; Rachel Z; Jimi Tunnell; Mike Stern; Steve Khan; Eddie Gómez; Darryl Jones; Tony Levin; Jeff Andrews; Victor Bailey; Marc Johnson; Steve Gadd; Peter Erskine; Dennis Chambers; Donny McCaslin; Bryan Baker;

Steps Ahead is an American jazz fusion group.

History

The group arose out of spontaneous sessions at Seventh Avenue South, a jazz club in New York City owned by saxophonist Michael Brecker and trumpeter brother Randy Brecker.^[2] The first three albums were released under the name Steps, later changed to Steps Ahead, on Nippon Columbia in Japan, starting with the debut live album Smokin' in the Pit (1980), followed by Step By Step (1981) and Paradox (1982).^[3]

The shifting roster has included vibraphonist Mike Mainieri, saxophonists Michael Brecker, Bob Berg, Bendik Hofseth, Bill Evans, Ernie Watts, and Donny McCaslin; pianists Don Grolnick, Eliane Elias, Warren Bernhardt and Rachel Z; guitarists Mike Stern, Chuck Loeb, and Steve Khan; bassists Eddie Gomez, Darryl Jones, Tony Levin, Victor Bailey, Richard Bona, and Marc Johnson; and drummers Steve Gadd, Peter Erskine, Steve Smith, and Dennis Chambers.^[4]

Steps Ahead was active during the 1970s and 1980s, intermittently during the 1990s, and reunited for concerts in the mid-2000s.^[5]

Discography

As Steps

Step by Step (Better Days, 1980) – recorded in 1980
Smokin' in the Pit (Better Days, 1981) – recorded in 1979
Paradox: Live at Seventh Avenue South (Better Days, 1982) – recorded in 1981

As Steps Ahead

Steps Ahead (Elektra/Musician, 1983)
Modern Times (Elektra/Musician, 1984)
Magnetic (Elektra, 1986)
N.Y.C. (Capitol/Intuition, 1989)
Yin-Yang (NYC, 1992)
Live in Tokyo 1986 (NYC, 1994)
Vibe (NYC, 1995)
Holding Together (NYC, 2002)[2CD] – live rec. 1999
Steppin' Out with WDR Big Band (Jazzline, 2016)

Members

Current members

Mike Stern - guitar (1999-present)
Mike Mainieri - vibraphone (1979-present)
Eliane Elias - keyboard (1983-1985;1992-present)
Eddie Gomez - bass (1979-2002;2016-present)
Steve Smith - drums (1996-present)

References

^ "Guitarist Bryan Baker Prepares To Release "This Morning Day"". All About Jazz. February 13, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
^ "Seventh Avenue South | - Legendärer Jazzclub in Manhatten". Jazzband-live.de (in German). Retrieved 2020-02-19.
^ Hovan, C. Andrew (1 September 2000). "Steps: Step By Step/Paradox". Allaboutjazz.com. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
^ "NYC Records » Bio". Nycrecords.com. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
^ "NPR's JazzSet: Steps Ahead: 2005 Montreux Jazz Festival". Npr.org. 2006. Retrieved 4 October 2016.

External links

[1] "Guitarist Bryan Baker Prepares To Release "This Morning Day"". All About Jazz. February 13, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2020.

[2] "Seventh Avenue South | - Legendärer Jazzclub in Manhatten". Jazzband-live.de (in German). Retrieved 2020-02-19.

[Hovan-3] Hovan, C. Andrew (1 September 2000). "Steps: Step By Step/Paradox". Allaboutjazz.com. Retrieved 4 October 2016.

[NYC-4] "NYC Records » Bio". Nycrecords.com. Retrieved 4 October 2016.

[NPR-5] "NPR's JazzSet: Steps Ahead: 2005 Montreux Jazz Festival". Npr.org. 2006. Retrieved 4 October 2016.

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