You Are Here

Steve Khan is an expert at playing tough, aggressive fusion, and he's equally proficient when it comes to straight-ahead jazz and hard bop. But for You Are Here, the flexible guitarist favors a pensive, relaxed style of jazz-pop that draws heavily on Latin forms (including Brazilian, Afro-Cuban and Peruvian music). Much of the album (which he co-leads with keyboardist/singer Rob Mounsey) inspires comparisons to the lyrical explorations of the Pat Metheny Group; this isn't to say that Khan's own personality vanishes, but Metheny's influence is impossible to overlook on melodic pieces such as "Viajar Y Viajar," "Fazendeiro" and "Platanos Maduros." Khan and Mounsey (who provides a lot of wordless, Brazilian-inspired vocals) had been working with each other on and off since 1979, and the two seem to enjoy each other's company a lot on this CD. Although not quite essential, You Are Here is an enjoyable illustration of how compatible Khan and Mounsey can be both as soloists and composers. ~ Alex Henderson