Mark Egan

Biography

Mark Egan (born January 14, 1951, in Brockton, Massachusetts) is an American jazz bassist known for his membership in the Pat Metheny Group and the Gil Evans Orchestra. He is co-founder of the jazz fusion band Elements.

Biography

Mark McDaniel Egan was born in Brockton, Massachusetts in 1951. Influenced by his father, he studied trumpet at age 10. He played the trumpet throughout high school, and began playing the bass when he was 15. While attending the University of Miami's Frost School of Music, initially as a trumpet student, he studied with jazz educator Jerry Coker. He switched from trumpet to bass part way through the program. While in Miami he also became friends and performed with Ira Sullivan, Pat Metheny, Danny Gottlieb, Clifford Carter. His teachers included Jaco Pastorius, Dave Holland, and Andy LaVerne.
In 1974 and 1975, after graduating from the University of Miami School of Music with a degree in Studio Music and Jazz, Egan was a member of the Phyliss Hyman Group, the PH Factor eventually moving to New York City with band members Hiram Bullock (guitar), Clifford Carter (keyboards) and Billy Bowker (drums). Egan went on to tour with Eumir Deodato, The Pointer Sisters and recorded and toured with David Sanborn. In 1977 He was part of the original Pat Metheny Group until 1980. Following his tenure with Pat Metheny he worked as a studio musician in New York City where he recorded and performed with some of the finest musicians in the world including Joe Beck, Steve Khan, Chris Parker, Steve Gadd, Jeff Mironov, Lew Soloff, Lou Marini, John Faddis, Joe Caro, Hugh McCracken, Allan Schwartzberg, John Tropea, Ira Siegal, Richard Crooks, Craig Snyder and many more great musicians.
In 1981 he started the jazz fusion group Elements. co-led with drummer, Danny Gottlieb. They were joined on several Elements releases by Bill Evans - saxophones, Clifford Carter - keyboards, Steve Kahn - guitar, Joe Caro - guitar, Airto Moreira - percussion, Flora Purim -vocals, Jeff Mironov - guitar, Stan Samole - guitar, David Mann - saxophones, and Manolo Badrena - percussion. Elements recorded and toured world wide through the 1990s and recorded nine records released on Antilles, RCA and Wavetone Records.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Egan was also part of the Gil Evans Orchestra. He founded his own record label, Wavetone Records, with twenty six releases to date.
In 1985 he released his first solo recording, Mosaic on the Hip Pocket Label, distributed by Windham Hill Records. His next solo recording, A Touch Of Light, was released in 1988 on the GRP Label. Additional solo projects include, Beyond Words, As We Speak, Truth Be Told, About Now, Direction Home and Cross Currents. Recent collaborations have created Electric Blue, with Drummer Danny Gottlieb, and Dreaming Spirits, with Arjun Brugemann, all released on the Wavetone Records Label.
Egan has made three music videos: Om Yoga & Meditation, Music on the Edge, and Bass Workshop. He has appeared on the soundtracks of movies including The Big Lebowski, Aladdin, Two Moon Junction, The Object of My Affection, You've Got Mail, The Color of Money, Rollover, Quick Change, Blown Away, and A Chorus Line. He recorded the album, Urge, with trumpeter Forrest Buchtel, Jr., featuring, among other things, the theme from CNN Headline News.
Egan has toured and recorded with a vast range of artists including Gil Evans, Pat Metheny, Stan Getz, Sting, Arcadia, Roger Daltrey, Richie Havens, Joan Osborne, Marianne Faithfull, Michael Franks, Steve Grossman, David Liebman, Mitchel Forman, Mike Stern, Terumasa Hino, Laurie Anderson, Carly Simon, Art Garfunkel, John McLaughlin, Larry Coryell, Pat Martino, Judy Collins, Cyndi Lauper, Sophie B. Hawkins, Bill Evans, Lew Soloff, Joe Beck, Jim Hall, Airto Moreira, Flora Purim, Toninho Horta, Linley Hamilton, Paul Shaffer, Gato Barbieri, Chuck Loeb, Hiram Bullock, Clifford Carter, Shawn Colvin, Dar Williams, Gil Goldstein, Eumir Deodato, Marc Cohn, Mark Murphy, George Grunz, Vicki Sue Robinson, Walter Bishop Jr., Sonny Fortune, Frank Wess, Tania Maria, Jackie Mclean, Rory Block, Mimi Farina, Alex Digrassi, Reza Kahn, Jeff Ciampa, Sergio Pereira, Karl Latham, Special EFX, Arjun Bruggemann, Krishna Das and The Pointer Sisters.

As leader

1985 Mosaic (Hip Pocket)
1988 A Touch of Light (GRP)
1992 Beyond Words (Mesa/Bluemoon)
2001 Freedom Town (Wavetone)
2006 As We Speak (Wavetone)
2008 Tell Me a Bed Time Story: The Big Apple (Universal Distribution)
2010 Truth Be Told (Wavetone)
2013 Unit 1 (Wavetone)
2014 About Now (Wavetone)
2015 Direction Home (Wavetone)
2017 "Dreaming Spirits×Dreaming Spirits2017 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1Village Call2Mombossa3Wave Motion4C Drone Expansion5Canyon Walk6Framonics7The in Between8Joy Ride9Spirit Blues10Dreaming Spirits11Morning Light12Waking Spirits13Voices14When Spirits Dance" Mark Egan and Arjun Bruggeman featuring Shane Theriot (Wavetone)
2020 "Electric Blue×Electric Blue1 September 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 8 tracks1Back and Forth4:242Cabarete4:563Down the Road4:104Electric Blue6:425Come What May7:546Blue Sound Bath7:027Hookey2:118Offering10:17 " with Danny Gottlieb (Wavetone)
2024 "Cross Currents×Cross Currents13 January 2024 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Ponchatrain5:292Gulf Stream4:223Cross Currents4:454Big Sky5:315Pocket Call4:376Homebrew4:277Sunflower4:338Roll with it4:379Nonc Rodell5:1310Sand Castles5:2011Eastern Blue5:43" with Shawn Pelton and Shane Theriot (Wavetone)

With Elements

Elements
Elements Forward Motion
Illumination
Liberal Arts
Spirit River
Blown Away
Far East Volume 1
Far East Volume 2
Untold Stories
Wouldn't It Be Nice: Tribute to Brian Wilson