Record Reviews
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  | FLOCK ~ FLOCK ROCK – THE BEST OF THE FLOCK
BGO 838 (Barcode: 5017261208385) ~ USA ~ Brass Rock
Recorded: 1969 - 1970 Released: 2008
First a very important explanation why a "Best Of…" album would be considered at all to be placed on my site, as my loathing of the very idea of a "Best Of…" album is commonly known. Well the album´s title is somewhat confusing; the CD does include some of the material included on the first two original FlockFind albums by this artist albums: the eponymous debut and "Dinosaur SwampsFind albums with this title", but the "real" sensation is the inclusion of previously unreleased material recorded by the group for their third Columbia album, entitled "Flock RockFind albums with this title", which was abandoned after being rejected by the label. They are all here – superb instrumental pieces, which show the direction the group wanted to take and of course a most valuable addition to the group´s limited recorded output. Led by violinist Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist, Flock were definitely one of the most interesting Jazz-Rock Fusion ensembles at the time and alongside Blood, Sweat & TearsFind albums by this artist, ChicagoFind albums by this artist and ChaseFind albums by this artist revolutionized music as we know it. People who already own the two albums will get this for the bonus material and those who don´t, have now a splendid opportunity to get exposed to some of the best Fusion ever recorded!
| | Updated: 18/04/2020Posted: | CD 1 Slipcase Recommend To A Friend |
  | FUSION SYNDICATE ~ A SPEEDWAY ON SATURN`S RINGS
PURPLE PYRAMID 4022 (Barcode: 889466402227) ~ USA ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 2012 - 2023 Released: 2023
This is the second album by the Fusion SyndicateFind albums by this artist, a brainchild of American guitarist / composer / producer Fernando PerdomoFind albums by this artist, who assembled a group of Fusion / Prog superstars to record (mostly) his compositions with various lineups, which change from track to track. The collective lineup includes guitarists Al Di MeolaFind albums by this artist and Jan AkkermanFind albums by this artist, keyboardists Rick WakemanFind albums by this artist and Brian JacksonFind albums by this artist, bassist Jah WobbleFind albums by this artist and Alphonso JohnsonFind albums by this artist and drummer Chester ThompsonFind albums by this artist, among others. The album presents eight tracks recorded in late 2022 and early 2023.
The album also presents four bonus tracks produced and composed by bassist / composer Billy SherwoodFind albums by this artist, which originate from the debut eponymous album by Fusion Syndicate from 2012, which is difficult to find these days. It features such Fusion giants like bassist Jimmy HaslipFind albums by this artist, guitarist Larry CoryellFind albums by this artist, violinist Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist, drummer Billy CobhamFind albums by this artist and others.
Although featuring excellent musicians, the album has nothing new to offer musically and has no coherent concept per se. There is plenty of excitement and excellent soloing by the participants, as expected, but sadly it confirms the notion that Fusion, following a relatively brief period of creativity and Artistic productivity during the Golden Decade (1965-1975) has been mostly dormant, if not dead since.
Overall, this is a well-played typical Fusion album, which adds nothing new to the genre’s illustrious past, but offers a pleasant listening experience to the genre’s hard to die fans.
| | Updated: 08/12/2023Posted: 08/12/2023 | CD 1 Digipak Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend |
  | JERRY GOODMAN / JAN HAMMER ~ LIKE CHILDREN
WOUNDED BIRD 0430 (Barcode: 664140043022) ~ USA ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 1974 Released: 2006
Only album by this duo, formed following the demise of John McLaughlinFind albums by this artist’s Mahavishnu OrchestraFind albums by this artist Mk. I in 1973. Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist and Jan HammerFind albums by this artist were the founding members of MO and played on the seminal three first albums by the group. This album is quite different from the fiery pyrotechnics used in MO and concentrates on presenting a gentler and more personal side of both musicians. Hammer composed most of the music for this album (with Goodman contributing on three tracks), which varies a lot stylistically between Funk, Fusion and Progressive. Between the two of them they play a myriad of instruments, with Hammer handling all keyboards and percussion and Goodman playing electric and acoustic violins and guitars. Hammer shines on the moog synthesizer, his main solo instrument, and Goodman displays again his amazing violin technique, which resembles his work with FlockFind albums by this artist (before MO). The album lost none of its charm in time and is still a prime example of well-played and sophisticated Fusion music. Since Goodman’s recording heritage is rather sparse, it’s great to see this album back in circulation. Recommended!
| | | CD 1 Recommend To A Friend |
  | GARY HUSBAND ~ DIRTY & BEAUTIFUL VOLUME 1
ABSTRACT LOGIX 027 (Barcode: 700261307053) ~ UK ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 2010 Released: 2010
This is the first of two albums by British drummer / keyboardist / composer Gary HusbandFind albums by this artist recorded with a host of friends, all of which are superstars of British and international Jazz, Rock and Jazz-Rock Fusion, like guitarists Allan HoldsworthFind albums by this artist, John McLaughlinFind albums by this artist, Robin TrowerFind albums by this artist, Steve HackettFind albums by this artist and Steve ToppingFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Jan HammerFind albums by this artist, violinist Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist and bassists Jimmy JohnsonFind albums by this artist, Steve PriceFind albums by this artist, Mark KingFind albums by this artist, Laurence CotileFind albums by this artist and Livingstone BrownFind albums by this artist. The various lineups perform twelve pieces, seven of which are original compositions by Husband and one is co-composed by him.
The music, as expected after reading the lineup, ranges from Rock via Fusion to Jazz, presenting a coherent picture of musical virtuosity and compositional elegance. In contrast to many other similar projects based on the same idea of recording an album with many superstars, which usually fail miserably to achieve any substantial musical value, this attempt works wonderfully from start to finish with no dull moments to spare. The stylistic variety and the different atmospheric vistas present a superb collage of intelligent and fascinating music, which is a pleasure to listen to.
As expected, the album is full of exceptional soloing. Husband keeps it all together with his dynamic and powerful rhythm drive, contributing a few keyboard solos on the way. The main point here is the mutual respect these stellar musicians have for each other, putting any competition and ego trips out of the way and concentrating on the final result. Husband turns out to be a wonderful catalyst here, able to create ad hoc lineups that sound as if they were playing together for ages.
In short this is not only Fusion heaven, but a comprehensive overview of the genre in the most open minded approach possible, which encompasses everything between Rock and Free Jazz. Husband´s openness towards similarly remote sub genres was always one of his most remarkable qualities. This is definitely a must for all Fusion lovers, but every connoisseur of good music should be able to enjoy this immensely!
| | Updated: 06/07/2016Posted: 06/07/2016 | CD 1 Mini-Sleeve Recommend To A Friend |
  | MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA ~ LIVE AT THE BERKELEY COMMUNITY THEATER NOVEMBER 9, 1972
RENAISSANCE 901 (Barcode: 630428090125) ~ UK ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 1972 Released: 2024
This is an archival live album by the original lineup of the legendary Fusion group Mahavishnu OrchestraFind albums by this artist, led by British guitarist / composer / bandleader John McLaughlinFind albums by this artist, with American violinist Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist, Czech keyboardist Jan HammerFind albums by this artist, Irish bassist Rick LairdFind albums by this artist and American (born in Panama) drummer Billy CobhamFind albums by this artist. The 2CD album presents nine lengthy tracks, taken form the group’s debut album “The Inner Mounting FlameFind albums with this title” and the not yet released at the time second album “Birds Of FireFind albums with this title”. All the music was composed by McLaughlin except one tune composed by Miles DavisFind albums by this artist.
The album is an incredible document of the way Mahavishnu Orchestra sounded and performed in their early days, with an obvious emphasis on improvisation. Two of the tracks are over twenty minutes in duration and another three well over ten minutes, which naturally allows for extensive soloing and group improvisation, which is rarely heard on the group’s studio albums. Although McLaughlin is at the epicenter of the performances, Goodman and Hammer get plenty of opportunity to show their improvising chops, as does the rhythm section of course.
Listening to the music over fifty years later plainly shows that the early 1970s were Fusion’s finest hours and everything since then was a slow degradation of the genre. McLaughlin freshly out of Miles Davis group is in absolute top form, and shows that he was the Godfather of Jazz-Rock Fusion after experimenting with improvisation while still living in UK and playing with Graham BondFind albums by this artist, Brian AugerFind albums by this artist and others and perfecting his stellar stylistics with Tony WilliamsFind albums by this artist and Miles Davis. It’s worthwhile to mention that the two pivotal American Jazz-Rock Fusion groups of the time, Mahavishnu Orchestra and Weather ReportFind albums by this artist, had more European input / influence than American, which is hardly surprising.
Overall, this is an immensely important historical document of the Jazz-Rock Fusion genre, which shows one of the most interesting, innovative and influential bands, recorded live and at the full splendor of its powers. Despite the sound quality, which is not ideal, but allows a painless listening experience, the quality of the music is monumental and the retrospective opportunity to relive these moments is an absolute bliss, lasting for two whole hours! Essential!
| | Updated: 11/11/2024Posted: 11/11/2024 | CD 2 Essential Recommend To A Friend |
  | MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA ~ THE COMPLETE COLUMBIA ALBUMS COLLECTION
SONY 886979303423 (Barcode: 886979303423) ~ UK ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 1971 - 1973 Released: 2011
To make things perfectly clear before we go any further, this Box Set includes music recorded by the first version of the seminal ensemble Mahavishnu OrchestraFind albums by this artist, which lasted for about a couple of years between 1971 and 1973 and released three albums on ColumbiaFind albums on this label. Subsequent versions of Mahavishnu Orchestra continued to release albums on Columbia, but those are not included here and will hopefully be released in the future as a separate Box Set.
British guitarist / composer John McLaughlinFind albums by this artist arrived at the epicenter of the revolutionary Jazz scene quite by chance, via his old friend bassist Jack BruceFind albums by this artist and his first American employer drummer Tony WilliamsFind albums by this artist, which eventually led to McLaughlin joining the Miles DavisFind albums by this artist group and playing a crucial role in creating the groundbreaking music Davis was forging at the time. Prompted by Davis, while still a part of his group, McLaughlin formed his first ensemble, which in retrospect turned out to be one of the most extraordinary Jazz-Rock Fusion ensembles, setting an example so powerful that now, over forty years later, it still reverberates and is being used as a definition of the genre.
Mahavishnu Orchestra was extraordinary in many ways. It brought together musicians from many different countries and cultural backgrounds: American violinist Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist, Czech keyboardist Jan HammerFind albums by this artist, Irish bassist Rick LairdFind albums by this artist and Panamanian drummer Billy CobhamFind albums by this artist, all virtuosi on their respective instruments. Such aggregation of talent is of course beneficial for the music, but can prove to be strenuous as far as personal relationships are concerned. Also, as far as the musical direction was concerned, McLaughlin and the ensemble had to create their own environment, as they were walking on a path, which was previously undiscovered.
McLaughlin had complete freedom while with Davis, which enabled him to stretch out and play expanded solos without any harmonic or rhythmic restrictions. Mahavishnu Orchestra was completely opposite: precise and sharp like a razor blade, with everything clicking on a beat and often following a neck-breaking speed. It is evident McLaughlin struggled with this new framework initially, only to conquer it gloriously. He composed almost all the music the ensemble played, with just an occasional contribution by Hammer, Goodman and Laird.
After recording and releasing the first two albums ("The Inner Mounting FlameFind albums with this title" and "Birds Of FireFind albums with this title"), the group recorded a third studio album, which was scrapped and laid hidden in the vaults, only to be released twenty six years later as "The Lost Trident SessionsFind albums with this title". A live recording at NY Central Park, called "Between Nothingness & EternityFind albums with this title", became the group´s third and last album recorded by the first lineup.
This Box Set includes the four a.m. albums and a bonus CD, which comprises of previously unreleased additional material from the live recording, which became the third album. There is also one earlier live recording added as a bonus track on the first album.
Of course this music is so brilliant and so important, that recommending it any further is simply superfluous. It is an absolute classic and a timeless ingredient of music history, which should be an essential cornerstone of any music collection.
| | Updated: 26/01/2019Posted: | CD 5 Mini-Sleeve Box Set Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend |
  | JOHN MCLAUGHLIN ~ ELECTRIC GUITARIST
COLUMBIA 46110 (Barcode: 074644611021) ~ UK ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 1979 Released: 1990
Solo album by John McLaughlinFind albums by this artist. An exceptional effort summarizing not only his illustrous career in the 70`s, but in fact the entire jazz-rock fusion genre of that period. A pleiade of music stars and cohorts participate here in various ensembles (Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist, Carlos SantanaFind albums by this artist, Chick CoreaFind albums by this artist, Tony WilliamsFind albums by this artist, Jack BruceFind albums by this artist, a.m.o.), strating with a virtual Mahavishnu OrchestraFind albums by this artist reunion, then moving to quartet, trio, duet and finally a McLaughlin solo guitar performance, which indicates his desire to perform as a soloist, realized later in the 80`s. Absolutely brilliant!
| | | CD 1 Remastered Essential Recommend To A Friend |
  | JAROSLAW SMIETANA ~ A TRIBUTE TO ZBIGNIEW SEIFERT
JSR 0011 (Barcode: 5901119902399) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 2009 Released: 2009
This is a stunning tribute album to the Polish violin virtuoso / composer Zbigniew SeifertFind albums by this artist by the great Polish guitarist Jaroslaw SmietanaFind albums by this artist and his band: pianist Piotr WylezolFind albums by this artist, bassist Zbigniew WegehauptFind albums by this artist, drummer Adam CzerwinskiFind albums by this artist and percussionist Slawomir BernyFind albums by this artist. Keyboardist Janusz GrzywaczFind albums by this artist guests on two tracks. Smietana invited nine leading Jazz violinists to play along with this fabulous band, performing Seifert´s wonderful compositions. They are: Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist (ex-Mahavishnu OrchestraFind albums by this artist, USA), Mateusz SmoczynskiFind albums by this artist (Poland), Didier LockwoodFind albums by this artist (France), Krzesimir DebskiFind albums by this artist (Poland), Christian HowesFind albums by this artist (USA), Mark FeldmanFind albums by this artist (USA), Maciej StrzelczykFind albums by this artist (Poland), Adam BaldychFind albums by this artist (Poland) and Pierre BlanchardFind albums by this artist (France). These nine virtuosi play like there´s no tomorrow and the resulting music is simply a breathtaking trip into Seifert´s world. This is such a conglomerate of talent, that anything said beyond this would be simply superfluous. Simply grab this ASAP, as you are about to take trip of your life – violin heaven indeed!
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  | SPECIAL JAZZ SEXTET ~ PROJEKT ELBLAG
ALLEGRO 022 (Barcode: 5901157049223) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz
Recorded: 2010 Released: 2011
This is the debut album by a Polish Jazz sextet, which changed its lineup and name several times before settling with the name Special Jazz SextetFind albums by this artist, before this album was recorded. It is led by keyboardist Bartek KrzywdaFind albums by this artist and includes saxophonist Szymon ZuehlkeFind albums by this artist, trombonist Artur OlewniczakFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Marcin GawdzisFind albums by this artist, bassist Janusz MackiewiczFind albums by this artist and drummer Grzegorz SyczFind albums by this artist. Saxophonist Przemek DyakowskiFind albums by this artist guests on five tracks and guitarist Jaroslaw SmietanaFind albums by this artist and violinist Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist each guest on one track. The album presents eight original compositions, all by Krzywda.
The music is melodic mainstream Jazz bordering on Jazz-Rock Fusion. The brass section is skillfully used in the arrangements to support the keyboards / rhythm section passages and overall the sextet functions as a solid well synchronized unit, achieving a polished and highly professional effect. There are plenty of excellent solo parts by all the participants and the guests.
The individual contributions by all the participants are truly outstanding and although these are not "famous" Polish Jazz musicians, their level of technical proficiency and skillful delivery are as good as those by musicians from the "premier league", which of course is a testimony of the incredibly high level of Polish Jazz in general.
Overall this is a very well played mainstream Jazz album, which should be satisfying to all listeners the world over. It is fun to listen to and presents first-class musicianship and interesting compositions.
| | | CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend |
  | VARIOUS ARTISTS ~ VISIONS OF AN INNER MOUNTING APOCALYPSE
MASCOT 7117 (Barcode: 8712725711728) ~ USA ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 2005 Released: 2005
This is the 2nd project in the series of Fusion tributes, conceived, produced and arranged by Jeff RichmanFind albums by this artist. An entire generation of contemporary fusion guitar players pays tribute to their divine master – John McLaughlinFind albums by this artist and his band Mahavishnu OrchestraFind albums by this artist. This ambitious project works out like a dream (a wet dream for fusion fans for sure). Ten compositions by McLaughlin, written for and performed with Mahavishnu Orchestra, are given here a new treatment. Each of the tracks features a different guitarist and the list reads like a who’s who of fusion: Mike SternFind albums by this artist, Steve MorseFind albums by this artist, Frank GambaleFind albums by this artist, David FiuczynskiFind albums by this artist, etc. The accompanying rhythm section of Vinnie CalaiutaFind albums by this artist – drums, Kai EckhardtFind albums by this artist – bass and Mitchel FormanFind albums by this artist – keyboards is the backbone of the project and carries the load splendidly. Ex-Mahavishnu Orchestra violinist Jerry GoodmanFind albums by this artist adds his magic touch on several tracks, closing the full circle, so to speak. Definitely a must for all Mahavishnu Orchestra fans and basically for all fusion fans - whatever their fusion taste may be this is much too good to be ignored.
| | | CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend |
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