Peter Bernstein | Better Angels

Downbeat magazine has called Peter Bernstein “a guitarist so good he often sounds like two guitarists in a duet… [reflecting] a mastery that is elegant, mellow and gently swinging.” That mastery is reflected in the staggering roster of giants with whom Bernstein has performed, from legends like Sonny Rollins, Lou Donaldson, Jim Hall, David “Fathead” Newman and Dr. Lonnie Smith, to peers including Christian McBride, Joshua Redman, Nicholas Payton and Diana Krall.

So when Bernstein decides to convene an all-star quartet, he has an unparalleled list of names to call on. Not that the esteem in which his collaborators is held is ever the driving motive in Bernstein’s mind – as always, the understated guitarist is simply driven to make the best music possible. He’s done exactly that on his brilliant new album Better Angels, which brings together the extraordinary multi-generational quartet of Bernstein, pianist Brad Mehldau, bassist Vicente Archer, and legendary drummer Al Foster.

Though recording together for the first time, the connections between the band members run deep, resulting in striking interplay that can’t help but thrive on the chemistry generated by the various connections, combined with the high-wire energy derived from delving into the unknown. Due out September 27, 2024, on Smoke Sessions Records, Better Angels features striking and incisive musicianship on both thoughtfully selected standards and bold original compositions. Get it here.

“Since this was our first time playing together, I wanted to play some things that are common ground for everybody,” Bernstein explains. “But I also wanted to document some new tunes while they’re still fresh. Hear these guys react to music that's new – and then reacting to their reactions – is really the fun of it for me.”

While their careers have traversed quite different paths and playing together has become a cherished rarity due to their mutual status among the most in-demand artists of their generation, Bernstein and Mehldau enjoy a personal and professional relationship that stretches back to their earliest days as students at the New School in New York City. Along with bassist John Webber, they began playing quartet dates with one of their teachers, drum giant Jimmy Cobb. That band recorded Bernstein’s 1994 debut for Criss Cross, Somethin’s Burnin’, as well as their follow-up 20 years later, 2014’s The Original Mob, also on Smoke Sessions.

Thirty years later, Better Angels brings that friendship full circle in a way. Foster is a generation younger than Cobb, but both are legendary drummers who have graced recordings by many of the music’s most iconic figures – Miles Davis chief among them. There’s also a family connection, as Cobb’s widow Eleana and Foster’s wife Bonnie are sisters.

Although Bernstein, Mehldau, and Archer have all had opportunities to work with Foster in the past, recording with the living legend was an obvious draw for all three. “Al is a complete master of interpretation and the orchestral power of the drums,” Bernstein exults. “When you play with someone like Al, you realize how many choices go into a drummer’s sound.”

Archer provided the final piece of the puzzle. He first played with Bernstein on an impromptu duo gig at Mezzrow and has become a frequent collaborator of late. “I love Vicente’s whole concept and approach to the bass,” Bernstein says. “He can really stretch the music out and also ground it when necessary. That’s really the job of the bass, to create harmonic and rhythmic tension in the band, and he’s a subtle master at that.”

The album opens with “Perpetual Pendulum,” revisiting the title track from Bernstein’s last Smoke Sessions outing, the thirteenth by his collaborative trio Larry Goldings and Bill Stewart. Since that 2022 release, he’s made minor alterations to the tune, opening up the solo section and leaving space for airy interactions between his guitar and Mehldau’s evocative chords.

The brisk “Ditty for Dewey” and the enchanting ballad “Hazel Eyes” are both dedications from Bernstein to his family, who may also have been on his mind as he christened the album’s title track, “Better Angels,” both suggesting a characterization for his children and a hope for their futures.

The band also offers intriguing takes on two standards. Typically languorous, “You Go to My Head” is approached with a mid-tempo groove, emphasizing the vibrant melody in a way that compels a forceful solo from Mehldau and an intricately filigreed turn by Bernstein that weaves gracefully around Archer’s robust bass line. Foster is given the spotlight to introduce Duke Jordan’s smoldering “No Problem,” which he embellishes throughout with ingeniously shifting rhythms.

“A standard like that is just asking you to create something on it,” Bernstein says. “Those are the tunes that are great to play with Al because he always makes them fresh.”

Bernstein closes out each half of the album (or each side if you’re listening to the LP) with a brief solo statement – a wistful “Born to Be Blue” and, concluding the album, a noir-tinged reflection on J.J. Johnson’s “Lament.”

“Let's see what happens when we put these elements together,” was the spirit of the session as expressed by Bernstein, the thrill of experimentation still evident in his voice long after the date was so successfully completed. “It’s always a learning experience.”