Remembering Walter Koenig and Patrick Stewart

This week has been a sad one for Star Trek with the passing of two icons from different generations of the franchise who both appeared in the appropriately titled 1994 movie, Star Trek: Generations.

I was shocked today to learn of the death of Sir Patrick Stewart at the age of 86, just days after the death of Walter Koenig at the age of 90.

Walter Koenig was famous for playing Starfleet officer Pavel Chekov in the original Star Trek television series from 1967 to 1969 and then again in seven Star Trek films, from Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979 to Star Trek: Generations in 1994.

Sir Patrick Stewart became a household name in 1987 at the age of 47 when he initiated the role of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in the television series, Star Trek: The Next Generation. Stewart played Picard for seven years on the small screen before taking the character to the big screen with four films, beginning with Star Trek: Generations in 1994 and concluding with Star Trek: Nemesis in 2002.

Stewart went on to become an even bigger international star with the role of Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men movies, before returning to conclude Picard and the Next Generation’s arc in the 2020-2023 television series, Star Trek: Picard.

I met Walter Koenig in 1994 when I took my brother to our first and only Star Trek convention at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City to meet and get the autographs of both Koenig and James Doohan (Star Trek’s Scotty). Koenig, 58 at the time, was recovering from a recent heart attack. It was wonderful to see the two Star Trek legends in person and interact with them briefly. Doohan passed away about a decade later at the age of 85.

Four years after seeing Sir Patrick Stewart on Broadway in 1994 in his one-man stage adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, I had the great honor and privilege of interviewing Stewart by telephone in 1998 for his USA Network movie, Moby Dick. It was quite the experience to hear his distinctive and stentorian voice on the phone speaking to me.

I was scheduled to interview Stewart’s costar, Henry Thomas of E.T. the Extraterrestrial fame, immediately afterward, and I wasn’t looking forward to the awkward prospect of cutting my interview with Stewart short. Thankfully, Stewart miraculously finished what he was saying at the exact minute I had to call Thomas. I told Stewart, and he was very gracious, saying, “I understand. And give Henry my love and greetings. We will talk again.”

I never did get to talk to Stewart again. However, Stewart continued to talk to me through his countless performances in the following years, and he will continue to talk to future generations through the vast and impressive legacy he leaves behind.

May the memories of Walter Koenig and Sir Patrick Stewart continue to live long and prosper.

--Raj Manoharan

MoonDial (2024), by Pat Metheny

Over the course of his nearly six-decade career, venerable and veteran superstar jazz guitarist Pat Metheny has released a whopping total of four solo acoustic albums, with MoonDial being his latest to date. Not only is it perhaps the best of these ambitious and intimate outliers, but it definitely ranks as one of his best overall works, even rivaling his usual electric output.

While I’m definitely a fan of Metheny’s flights of fancy on his searing and soaring guitar synthesizer leads, his unique performances here on a custom-made nylon-string baritone guitar are simply irresistible, infectious, and exquisite.

 

The album features a delightful and delectable mix of originals and covers, the latter of which include dreamy renditions of Paul McCartney’s iconic “Here, There and Everywhere” and Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s classic standard, “Somewhere.”

 

MoonDial is so endearing and captivating that I listened to it every evening for five months straight before writing this review. It’s that good.

 

--Raj Manoharan

Dream Box (2023), by Pat Metheny

Even without a full band of collaborative musicians and their instruments to embellish and expand upon his sound, Pat Metheny manages to captivate and enthrall, as demonstrated by this album of pensive and poignant electric guitar instrumentals.

Standout tracks include the classic jazz tune, “Never Was Love,” which has an infectious rhythmic groove thanks to Metheny’s buoyant solo over his energetic backing chords, and the Brazilian-flavored “Morning of the Carnival,” from the Black Orpheus soundtrack.

 

I am especially familiar with the latter because Police guitarist Andy Summers played it as part of his suite of selections from the film during his early 2020s one-man multimedia tour.

 

The song has its own recognizable compositional structure, but both guitarists definitely put their signature stamps on the tune. Metheny’s version is uniquely and unmistakably his.

 

Speaking of Summers, I’ve seen a photo online, perhaps on Metheny’s website, of Summers and Metheny playing acoustic guitars together in a house or hotel sometime in the early 1980s.

 

That photo and both Summers’ and Metheny’s individual takes on “Morning of the Carnival” compel me to suggest that the two should record at least one album of guitar duets, either electric or acoustic or both.

 

That would be a guitar lover’s dream.

 

Summers isn’t getting any younger. Make it happen, Pat!

 

--Raj Manoharan

Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV) (2021), by Pat Metheny

Venerable jazz guitarist Pat Metheny tests out his Side-Eye concept – in which he spotlights younger up-and-coming musicians – in a live setting, covering some familiar classics as well as newer repertoire and creating something both structured and in the moment.

The newer kids on the block here are James Francies on keyboards and synthesizers and Marcus Gilmore on drums and percussion. They keep their leader on his toes while he pushes them to rise to the occasion, resulting in a range of sounds that run the gamut from vintage jazz to progressive, state-of-the-art fusion.

 

Regardless of whether he’s playing with seasoned peers or fresh faces, Metheny always manages to hone in on his artistry and vision with precise focus, defined by his signature sound and his nimble and sublime leads.

 

A rare excursion into blues rock guitar and the much-welcome return of his blazing guitar synthesizer make this session an eclectic and worthy addition to Pat Metheny’s decades-long discography.

 

--Raj Manoharan

BEATrio (2025), by Bela Fleck, Edmar Castaneda, Antonio Sanchez

2026 GRAMMY AWARD NOMINEE FOR BEST CONTEMPORARY INSTRUMENTAL ALBUM

I’m not a fan of the banjo, and I’m even less of a fan of the harp, but these completely disparate instruments are two of the three unlikely ingredients – including drums and percussion – that make up this thoroughly engrossing and immersive album that sounds nothing like typical, traditional banjo or harp music.

The trio consists of banjo player extraordinaire Bela Fleck, harpist Edmar Castaneda, and drummer/percussionist Antonio Sanchez.

 

Fleck, of course, is an internationally renowned multiple Grammy Award nominee and winner and the leader of the jazz/world/new age fusion super group Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. Fleck is to the banjo what Andy Summers and Pat Metheny are to the guitar.

 

The harp sounds like a harp, but Castaneda plays it like I’ve never heard it played before, unleashing a dynamic range of tones and a lot of bouncy and snappy rhythms.

 

And longtime Pat Metheny collaborator Sanchez brings it all together with kinetic drums and percussion that keep everything moving.

 

I’m not sure if BEATrio is just the name of the album, the name of the group, or both, but one thing I know for certain is that this is one of the tightest, most energetic, and most exhilarating fusion bands on record.

 

--Raj Manoharan

Standards from film (2022), by Mike Moreno

While I’m not enough of a connoisseur of classic film to get the audio clip references as well as be familiar with the songs themselves, what I do know is that acclaimed and accomplished jazz guitarist Mike Moreno has definitely tapped into a vibe that is classic and vintage and classy and elegant. The result is one of his strongest sets yet.

 

Moreno’s earlier releases in the late 2000s and 2010s already demonstrated his technical proficiency on the fret board, and this album continues to evidence a steady hand and assured confidence in his playing and phrasing, presenting him as the venerable jazz guitar master that he most certainly is now. He is definitely on the level of guitar greats such as Andy Summers and Pat Metheny.

 

Moreno is supported by an equally talented group of amazing and wondrous musicians. Sullivan Fortner conjures rapturous swirls on piano, Matt Brewer anchors deep grooves and rhythms on bass, and Obed Calvaire keeps the beat palpable with floating drums and percussion. They absolutely contribute both individually and collectively to the overall atmosphere of this session. This is one of Moreno’s best bands on record.

 

The art of jazz guitar is alive and well in the highly capable hands of Mike Moreno.

 

--Raj Manoharan

Lotus Dream (2025), by Shambhu

Shambhu’s tenth album finds the guitarist doing what he does best – soothing listeners’ souls with gentle and peaceful acoustic guitar compositions that center them in their inner selves and take them to another level of sensory enlightenment.

However, Shambhu goes a bit further than usual, bringing a lot of piano as well as electric guitar into the mix, along with bass and synthesizers.

 

The result is an album that goes into Andy Summers, Pat Metheny, and Eric Johnson territory, all the while retaining Shambhu’s unique sensibilities.

 

Shambhu plays all the instruments on the album, with the exception of “Resilience,” which features electric and Nashville guitars by jazz guitarist Leo Steinriede.

 

The combination of acoustic and electric guitars and keyboards and synthesizers truly results in a sonic utopia of dreamy luminescence and transcendent bliss.

 

This is one of the best albums of its kind.

 

--Raj Manoharan