About Mike Stern
Mike Stern is an American jazz guitarist. After playing with Blood, Sweat & Tears, he worked with drummer Billy Cobham, then with trumpeter Miles Davis from 1981 to 1983 and again in 1985. He then began a solo career, releasing more than a dozen albums.
Stern was named Best Jazz Guitarist of 1993 by Guitar Player magazine. At the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal in June 2007, he was given the Miles Davis Award, which was created to recognize internationally acclaimed jazz artists whose work has contributed significantly to the renewal of the genre. In 2009 Stern was listed on Down Beat's list of 75 best jazz guitarists of all time. He received Guitar Player magazine's Certified Legend Award on January 21, 2012.
Stern was born Michael Sedgwick in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Helen Stern , a sculptor and art patron, and Henry Dwight Sedgwick V. His adoptive stepfather was Philip M. Stern, the son of businessman Edgar B. Stern Sr. His half-sister is actress Kyra Sedgwick. Stern is married to guitarist and vocalist Leni Stern.
Stern grew up in Washington, D.C., and began playing guitar at age 12, emulating the likes of B.B. King, Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix. However, it wasn’t until he entered the Berklee College of Music in Boston that he took guitar seriously. When he was twenty-two, he became a member of Blood, Sweat & Tears and spent three years with the band, appearing on the albums More Than Ever and Brand New Day.
Simultaneously, he was lead guitarist of a D.C. glam-rock band, the Dubonettes, who later became Charlie and the Pep Boys. The quintet released one album, the Nils Lofgren-produced Daddy's Girl, in 1976 before Stern left the group.
In 1979, he joined Billy Cobham's fusion band. Two years later he joined Miles Davis, making his public debut in 1981, a performance recorded on the album We Want Miles. He remained with Davis through 1983 until he was replaced by guitarist John Scofield. At the time, Stern was a heavy drinker and heroin user. In a 2009 interview, he said, "If Miles wants to put you in a rehab, you know you've got something wrong". From 1983 to 1984 he toured with Jaco Pastorius and in 1985 returned to tour with Davis. Stern and his wife were in rehabilitation; they were also helped by Michael Brecker and others.
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