by Nick DeRiso
Perhaps best remembered in jazz circles for his melodic work on the fretless (notably as a member of the Pat Metheny Group from 1977-80), bassist Mark Egan’s earliest influences couldn’t have been more far afield.
A former student of Jaco Pastorius at the University of Miami, Egan wanted to emulate Bernard Odum from the classic James Brown bands, and always loved the understated grooves put down by Motown legend James Jamerson.
Perhaps that’s why “Truth Be Told,” set for release on March 16 by Wavetone, feels both unconventional and simulataneously like old-fashioned homemade fun.
Setting down 11 songs in just three days with a group of friends that included saxophonist Bill Evans, percussionist Roger Squitero and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, Egan has put out a groove record — relentless, and often hypnotically enjoyable.
This is funk-fusion built on both passion and rapport, and maybe all the more surprising considering it follows Egan’s contemplative “As We Speak,” an ECM-inspired trio recording with fellow Metheny associate Danny Gottlieb and John Abercrombie.
“Truth Be Told” includes its share of romance, from the deft take on keyboardist Mitch Forman’s “Shadow Play” to the Indian-flavored finale “After Thought.” “See Saw” also recalls Egan’s experimental contemporary jazz work with Elements, featuring Gottlieb at the drums.
But, at its heart, “Truth Be Told” largely leaves aside Egan’s now-familiar diaphanous, almost floating vibe.
Led by these driving, guitar-influenced bass lines, the group happily tears through “Gargoyle,” the red-hot “Rhyme or Reason,” Egan’s titanic title track and — my favorite — “Pepe,” perhaps the most overtly influenced by old-school legends like John McLaughlin‘s Mahavishnu Orchestra.
Egan, like the simpatico Colaiuta, is equally adept at foundation-building rhythm work as he is at crafting solos that both challenge and entertain. He boasts the technique required of today’s complex contemporary jazz, but doesn’t settle — the way so many of the genre’s lesser lights have — for simply being showy.
Egan, it’s long been clear, had soul. “Truth Be Told” just underscores that.
- Nick DeRiso’s Best of 2015 (Rock + Pop): Death Cab for Cutie, Joe Jackson, Toto + Others - January 18, 2016
- Nick DeRiso’s Best of 2015 (Blues, Jazz + R&B): Boz Scaggs, Gavin Harrison, Alabama Shakes - January 10, 2016
- Nick DeRiso’s Best of 2015 (Reissues + Live): John Oates, Led Zeppelin, Yes, Faces + others - January 7, 2016
