Eberhard Weber

Résumé ECM ***

One of the musicians originally responsible for the fabled ECM sound, and one of the first bassists to give the instrument an explicitly melodic role, Eberhard Weber has been plying his unique five-string bass for as many decades, often with his own groups, occasionally with Kate Bush, but usually behind his friend and collaborator, saxophonist Jan Garbarek. In a live setting with the Garbarek group, Weber was always given a feature solo – just him, his bass, and a bank of processors. For Résumé, he has taken recordings of those solos and overdubbed new accompaniments, with Garbarek and percussionist Michael DiPasqua contributing on a few tracks. Weber may stray a little too close to the blandness candle for some tastes, but taken on its own terms, his sound is utterly unique and compelling. ecmrecords.com