John Stein Trio

Though born and raised in Kansas City, jazz guitarist John Stein has been a fixture on the East Coast jazz scene for a number of years now, gigging in the New York City and Boston areas while holding an assistant professorship at the prestigious Berklee College of Music. His latest recording, Conversation Pieces, is a collection of ten original compositions that range from the tightly wound swing of cuts like ³Up and At ‘Em² and ³Stepping Stones² to the lazy lope of ³Lucy Lou² and bouncy bossa feel of ³September.² Stein highlights his delicately crafted guitar style with subtle shades of harmony and a graceful flair for melodic improvisation. His laid-back, in-the-pocket approach resides far from the flash and fire of the more avant-garde elements of today’s jazz vocabulary while remaining infectiously engaging and thoroughly intimate.