In the '80s, Windham Hill Records had a reputation for being a new age label. Windham Hill was the home of major new age artists like Liz Story and George Winston; arguably, the company was to new age what Fania was to salsa, Blue Note was to jazz, and Def Jam was to rap; in other words, it wasn't the only player but was definitely a major player. However, not every instrumentalist who recorded for Windham Hill in the '80s provided new age. Post-bop/fusion keyboardist Billy Childs was never new age, and electric bassist Michael Manring was equally jazz-oriented. Unusual Weather, his first Windham Hill release, isn't straight-ahead bop – Manring isn't pretending to be Ray Brown or Paul Chambers. It is, however, a fusion/pop-jazz effort that often underscores Manring's appreciation of the late Jaco Pastorius.
Michael Bernier is a world renowned Chapman Stick player. Best known for his work with Tony Levin & Pat Mastelotto of King Crimson, Michael has been focusing on his solo material the past years. Ritchie DeCarlo is a drummer in Philadelphia, PA. He has albums out with Percy Jones, Scott McGill, Markus Reuter, Michael Manring & others. Ritchie commissioned Michael to play on his first solo album "Week" in 2012 & they have been working together ever since. Now they have released their second album as a duo. Special guests: Tony Levin, Pat Masteloto, Ed Mann, Billy Sherwood, John Wesley, Matte Henderson, Kandy Harris, Dean Pascarella.
Breakfast in the Field introduced virtuoso guitarist Michael Hedges to the new age and instrumental music community in stunning fashion.
This isn’t just another oblique or chops based attempt at paying homage to the late, great bassist Jaco Pastorius. Here, Italian acoustic-electric bassist, arranger Maurizio Rolli and his A.M.P. Big Band (along with some special guests), inject heartfelt imagery into the Pastorius songbook. With this release, Rolli focuses on Pastorius' compositional strengths.
After CYNTHESIS and its amazing second recording, the pertinently titled album, “ReEvolution”, the ultra talented Californian geminis Brothers, Troy & Jasun Tipton (ex ZERO HOUR), are back with another chapter in their instrumental project discography…ABNORMAL THOUGHT PATTERNS and once again the expansion of their genuine style and the maturated development is terrific, the release date is set for late June…The band broad universe is so extended that the term "limitless" seems underrated and non-representative of their extraordinary and unstoppable musical dominion!…
Essential: a masterpiece of Fusion music
Michael Hedges, luckly, doesn’t have these kind of problems . Rather, to think that they have been being spent 20 years for that night of 2nd of December 1997 when he died in a crash car, 43 years old…