# Steve Khan

Steve Khan (born Steven Harris Cahn; April 28, 1947) is an American jazz guitarist.

## Career

Steven Harris Cahn was born in Los Angeles. His father, lyricist Sammy Cahn, "loved to hear any and all versions of his songs". He took piano lessons as a child and played drums for the surf rock band the Chantays. The band's guitarist exposed him to the albums Tough Talk by The Crusaders and Movin' Wes by Wes Montgomery. In his late teens he quit the drums and started playing guitar. He was a member of the R&B band Friends of Distinction, recorded with keyboardist Phil Moore, then played on the album Bullitt by Wilton Felder ("one of my heroes"). Despite his father's advice to avoid a career in the music business, he graduated from UCLA with a degree in music composition and theory. Early in his career, Khan changed the spelling of his surname in order to "create a separate identity from [his] famous father" and because he was "so hurt and angry with him for so many childhood things."
In the early 1970s, he performed in an acoustic guitar duo with Larry Coryell and was a member of the Brecker Brothers band. As a session musician, he appeared on albums by Ashford & Simpson, Rupert Holmes, Billy Joel, and Steely Dan. He was signed to Columbia Records through the efforts of Bobby Colomby and Bob James. On his first three albums Tightrope (1977), The Blue Man (1978), and Arrows (1979), he was trying "to single-handledly keep alive the sound of the original Brecker Brothers band." His next album was Evidence (1980), which contained an eighteen-minute medley of songs by Thelonious Monk.
He has also produced recordings for fellow guitarists Larry Coryell, Mike Stern, Biréli Lagrène, and Bill Connors, as well as pianist Eliane Elias.

## Awards and honors

* Grammy Award nomination, Local Color (1987)
* Grammy Award nomination, Borrowed Time (2007)
* Named to list of "22 All-Time Greatest Jazz Guitarists", Jazz Life magazine (1998)

## Discography
### As leader

| Release date | Title | Label | Musicians |
| 1977 | Two for the Road | Arista | Acoustic guitar duo with Larry Coryell |
| 1977 | Tightrope | Tappan Zee | With the Brecker Brothers, Steve Gadd, Don Grolnick, Will Lee, Jeff Mironov, Ralph MacDonald. |
| 1978 | The Blue Man | CBS | line-up similar to 1977 |
| 1979 | Arrows | Columbia | similar to 1977, Rick Marotta, Gadd, Mounsey, Errol "Crusher" Bennett. David Sanborn on two tracks. |
| 1980 | Evidence | Arista Novus | Solo guitar with compositions by Wayne Shorter, Horace Silver, Thelonious Monk. |
| 1981 | Eyewitness | Antilles | Eyewitness quartet with Anthony Jackson, Steve Jordan, Manolo Badrena. |
| 1985 | Modern Times | Polydor | Eyewitness quartet. Recorded live in Tokyo, Japan. |
| 1984 | Casa Loco | Antilles | Eyewitness quartet. |
| 1987 | Helping Hand | Polydor | Eyewitness quartet plus Bill Evans, Clifford Carter, Neil Jason, Christopher Parker, Café, Japan only release. |
| 1987 | Local Color | Passport | Duo with Rob Mounsey. |
| 1989 | Public Access | GRP | Eyewitness quartet as Khan, Anthony Jackson, Manolo Badrena, Dave Weckl. |
| 1991 | Let's Call This | Blue Moon | Trio with Ron Carter and Al Foster. |
| 1992 | Headline | Blue Moon | Trio with Carter and Foster. |
| 1994 | Crossings | PolyGram | Eyewitness quartet |
| 1994 | The Collection | Columbia | Best Of from the Columbia years 1977-79 |
| 1997 | Got My Mental | Evidence | Trio with John Patitucci and Jack DeJohnette plus four percussionists: Café, Bobby Allende, Don Alias, Marc Quiñones. |
| 1998 | You Are Here | SIAM Records | Duo with Rob Mounsey featuring Marc Quiñones. |
| 1999 | New Horizons | Concord Picante Records | Co-Leader with Dave Samuels and Dave Valentin. |
| 2000 | Paraíso | Concord Picante Records | Co-Leader with Dave Samuels and Dave Valentin. |
| 2005 | The Green Field | Tone Center | Quartet with Patitucci, DeJohnette, Badrena, plus Roberto Quintero and Ralph Irizarry. |
| 2007 | Borrowed Time | Tone Center | Sextet with Patitucci, DeJohnette, Badrena, Quintero, Irizarry. |
| 2008 | The Suitcase: Live in Köln '94 | Tone Center | Eyewitness trio with Dennis Chambers and Anthony Jackson. |
| 2011 | Parting Shot | Tone Center | Eyewitness quartet plus Allende, Quiñones. |
| 2014 | Subtext | Tone Center | Quintet with Chambers, Allende, Quiñones, Rubén Rodriguez. |
| 2015 | Tightrope-The Blue Man-Arrows | BGO Records(UK) | The Columbia Years 1977-79. |
| 2016 | Eyewitness-Modern Times-Casa Loco | BGO Records(UK) | Eyewitness from 1981-83 w/ Anthony Jackson, Steve Jordan & Manolo Badrena |
| 2017 | Backlog | Tone Center | Featuring Allende, Quiñones, Rodriguez, Mark Walker, Mounsey, Randy Brecker, Mintzer, Mainieri, Tatiana Parra. |
| 2018 | Public Access-Headline-Crossings | BGO Records(UK) | Eyewitness from 1989-94. |
| 2019 | Patchwork | Tone Center | Featuring Allende, Quiñones, Rodriguez, Chambers, Mounsey, Randy Brecker, Mintzer, Tatiana Parra, Jorge Estrada. |
| 2022 | Island Letter | Blue Canoe | Featuring: Mark Kibble, Rob Mounsey, Rubén Rodríguez and Marc Quiñones. |

### As sideman

| Date | Main recording artist | Album | Label | Notes |
| 1974 | Czesław Niemen | Mourner's Rhapsody | CBS Records International | released 1974 in West Germany, 1975 in UK an 1976 in US (by Import Records) |
| 1975 | Luther Allison | Night Life | Tamla Motown | |
| 1977 | Ashford & Simpson | Send It | | |
| 1977 | Ashford & Simpson | So So Satisfied | | |
| 1979 | Ashford & Simpson | Stay Free | | |
| 1976 | Patti Austin | End of a Rainbow | | |
| 1977 | Patti Austin | Havana Candy | | |
| 1979 | Gato Barbieri | Euphoria | A&M | Khan on one track |
| 1975 | Joe Beck | Beck | Kudu | Khan as second guitarist |
| 1979 | Joe Beck & David Sanborn | Beck & Sanborn | Kudu, CTI | |
| 1976 | George Benson/Joe Farrell | Benson & Farrell | CTI | Khan on two tracks |
| 1977 | Walter Bishop Jr. | Soul Village | | |
| 1976 | Brecker Brothers | Back to Back | | |
| 1977 | Brecker Brothers | Don't Stop the Music | | |
| 1969 | Tim Buckley | Blue Afternoon | | |
| 2000 | Caribbean Jazz Project | New Horizons | | |
| 2001 | Caribbean Jazz Project | Paraiso | | |
| 2000 | Jimmy Cobb | So Nobody Else Can Hear | | |
| 1977 | Billy Cobham | Inner Conflicts | | |
| 1978 | Billy Cobham | Alivemutherforya | | |
| 1978 | Billy Cobham | Simplicity of Expression | | |
| 2007 | Paula Cole | Courage | | |
| 1975 | Larry Coryell | Level One | Arista | 12-string guitar on title track |
| 1975 | Larry Coryell | Planet End | Vanguard | Guest appearance |
| 1976 | Larry Coryell | Aspects | Arista | Guest appearance on acoustic guitar |
| 1989 | Eddie Daniels | Blackwood | | |
| 1989 | Miles Davis | Amandla | Warner | |
| 1992 | Mark Egan | Beyond Words | | |
| 1989 | Elements | Liberal Arts | | |
| 1982 | Donald Fagen | The Nightfly | | Acoustic guitar on "New Frontier" |
| 1969 | Wilton Felder | Bullitt | | |
| 1977 | Maynard Ferguson | New Vintage | | |
| 1985 | Aretha Franklin | Who's Zoomin' Who? | | |
| 1989 | Aretha Franklin | Through the Storm | | |
| 1982 | Michael Franks | Objects of Desire | | |
| 1985 | Michael Franks | Skin Dive | | |
| 1987 | Michael Franks | The Camera Never Lies | | |
| 1993 | Michael Franks | Dragonfly Summer | | |
| 1999 | Michael Franks | Barefoot on the Beach | | |
| 1982 | Randy Goodrum | Fool's Paradise | Polydor | |
| 1976 | Grant Green | The Main Attraction | | |
| 1976 | Freddie Hubbard | Windjammer | | |
| 1977 | Bob James | Heads | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1979 | Bob James | Lucky Seven | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1981 | Bob James | Sign of the Times | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1981 | Bob James | All Around the Town | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1983 | Bob James | The Genie: Themes & Variations from the TV Series "Taxi" | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1983 | Bob James | Foxie | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1984 | Bob James | 12 | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1987 | Bob James | Obsession | Warner Bros. | |
| 1995 | Bob James | The Swan | Tappan Zee/Columbia | |
| 1977 | Billy Joel | The Stranger | Columbia | |
| 1978 | Billy Joel | 52nd Street | Columbia | |
| 1980 | Chaka Khan | Naughty | | |
| 1976 | Hubert Laws | Romeo & Juliet | Columbia | Khan on one track |
| 1977 | Kenny Loggins | Celebrate Me Home | | |
| 1981 | Mike Mainieri | Wanderlust | Warner Bros. | |
| 1976 | Steve Marcus | Sometime Other Than Now | | |
| 1992 | Mendoza/Mardin Project | Jazzpaña | | |
| 2005 | Jason Miles | Cozmopolitan | Jason Miles | Khan on one track. Self-released recording from 1979. |
| 1969 | Phil Moore Jr. | Right On | Atlantic | |
| 1977 | Walter Murphy | Rhapsody in Blue | Private Stock | Khan on two tracks. |
| 1978 | Pages | Pages | | |
| 1978 | Eddie Palmieri | Euphoria | | |
| 1975 | Esther Phillips w/Beck | What a Diff'rence a Day Makes | Kudu, CTI | Khan on rhythm guitar |
| 1976 | Esther Phillips | Capricorn Princess | Kudu, CTI | Khan on three tracks. |
| 1976 | Esther Phillips with Beck | For All We Know | Kudu, CTI | Khan on rhythm guitar. |
| 1989 | Lou Rawls | At Last | Blue Note | Khan on three tracks. |
| 1990 | Lou Rawls | It's Supposed to Be Fun | Blue Note | Khan on three tracks. |
| 1997 | Philippe Saisse | Next Voyage | | |
| 1996 | Salt & Sugar | -Concerts- | Fun House | Khan on two tracks. |
| 1989 | Dave Samuels | Ten Degrees North | | |
| 1998 | Dave Samuels | Tjader-ized: A Cal Tjader Tribute | | |
| 1975 | David Sanborn | Taking Off | Warner Bros. | Khan is main guitarist here and wrote two of the nine tracks. |
| 1978 | Helen Schneider | Let It Be Now | | |
| 1985 | Diane Schuur | Deedles | | |
| 1988 | Diane Schuur | Talkin' 'Bout You | | |
| 1980 | Don Sebesky | Sebesky Fantasy | | |
| 1993 | John Sebastian | Tar Beach | | |
| 1978 | Ben Sidran | Live at Montreux | Arista | |
| 1984 | Ben Sidran | Bop City | Antilles, Baybridge | |
| 1993 | Ben Sidran | Life's a Lesson | Go Jazz | |
| 2013 | Janis Siegel | Nightsongs: A Late Night Interlude | | |
| 1977 | Phoebe Snow | Never Letting Go | | |
| 1978 | Phoebe Snow | Against the Grain | | |
| 1977 | Steely Dan | Aja | | Khan on one track. |
| 1980 | Steely Dan | Gaucho | | |
| 1989 | Steps Ahead | N.Y.C. | | |
| 1992 | Steps Ahead | Yin-Yang | | |
| 1988 | Mike Stern | Time in Place | | |
| 1999 | Dave Valentin | Sunshower | | |
| 1976 | Grover Washington Jr. | A Secret Place | | |
| 1989 | Kirk Whalum | The Promise | | |
| 2005 | Joe Zawinul | Weather Update | | |
| 2003 | Guillermo Carrasco | Una a la vez | eMG | Khan on guitar, tracks El Camino, El Arbol, Lucía. |

## Books

* Pentatonic Khancepts (Alfred Music, 2002)
* Contemporary Chord Khancepts (Alfred Music, 1996)
* Wes Montgomery Guitar Folio (Jamey Aebersold, 1973)
* Pat Martino: The Early Years (Alfred Music, 1991)