Richard Bona

Born: October 28, 1967

Born in 1967 in the village of Minta in East Cameroon, Richard Bona grew up in a home filled with music. He began to perform in public at the age of five, singing in the village church with his mother and four sisters. His earliest instruments were wooden flutes and hand percussion. Eventually he constructed his own 12-string acoustic guitar. After moving to the bigger city of Douala, Richard began playing gigs at the age of 11 on a rented electric guitar. A major turning point in his life happened in 1980 when a Frenchman came to his town and established a jazz club in a local hotel. The club owner heard about the young local prodigy and hired him to assemble a band

Jim Watson: Calling You Home

by Neil Duggan
July 3, 2025

Pianist Jim Watson's wide-ranging career has seen him collaborate with an amazing array of artists across the jazz and pop genres, including Manu Katche, Kurt Elling, Sting, Richard Bona, Chrissie Hynde and Meshell Ndegeocello, to name just a few. This versatility bears fruit in both his compositions and choice of covers on his solo album Calling ...

Fusion Experience Quartet at Teatro Comunale in Caserta

by Pietro Previti
April 28, 2025

A Brief Guide To Ukrainian Jazz: Part 2

by Ian Patterson
March 19, 2025

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 The second installment of A Brief Guide To Ukrainian Jazz--a series developed with the cooperation of the Ukrainian Institute--introduces five more highly talented jazz artists/groups from Ukraine. In addition, we profile the jazz festivals and jazz clubs that are keeping the Ukrainian jazz ...

Richard Bona: Exploring Roots, Freedom, and Global Sounds

by Steven Roby
January 9, 2025

Richard Bona, the Grammy-winning bassist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist affectionately known as “The African Sting," brings his unparalleled artistry to Yoshi's in Oakland this January. With his Asante Trio--featuring Cuban pianist Jesus Pupo and drummer Ludwig Afonso--Bona promises an Afro-Cuban musical feast. But his Yoshi's performances are only the beginning of an exciting year, packed with a ...

Echoes and Other Songs

By Mike Stern

Label: Mack Avenue Records
Released: 2024
Track listing: Connections; Echoes; Stuff Happens; Space Bar; I Hope So; Where's Leo?; Gospel Song; Crumbles; Curtis; Climate; Could Be.

Boarding Pass

By Reginald Policard

Label: Encuentro Music
Released: 2024
Track listing: Encuentro Theme; Sabor Caribe?o; Sine; Melancolia; Sa'K Pas�� ; Boarding Pass (feat. Sammy Figueroa); Celebration; Sabor Caribe?o; Choucoune (feat. Jeff Policard); Toda F�� - (feat Gilmar Gomes, Richard Bona & Angelique Kidjo)

Mike Stern: The Story Behind Echoes and Other Songs

by Steven Roby
December 13, 2024

Mike Stern's voice carries a mix of warmth and humility as he reflects on his latest album, Echoes and Other Songs. A celebrated figure in the world of jazz fusion, Stern joined the Backstage Bay Area podcast for a candid conversation about his creative process and his stellar lineup of collaborators.From the heartfelt tributes ...

Mike Stern: Echoes and Other Songs

by Neil Duggan
September 19, 2024

Echoes and Other Songs is guitarist Mike Stern's first release since the loss of pianist, friend and confidante, Jim Beard in March, 2024. Beard, perhaps best known for his association with Steely Dan, appears here as pianist, keyboardist and producer. Stern is still on the long road to recovery following a fall in 2016 that broke ...

Mike Stern: Echoes and Other Songs

by Doug Collette
September 13, 2024

With a running time of seventy-seven minutes plus, guitarist Mike Stern's Echoes and Other Songs is effectively a double album. And like most such expansive works--including classics like Bob Dylan's Blonde On Blonde (Columbia, 1966) and The Beatles (aka 'The White Album')(Apple, 1968)--it would benefit from consolidation of its best elements (as would a replacement of ...