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Mahavishnu

#43
Nice post, Ken!

KJung said:
It was fun to be a young bassist when all that stuff came out. I remember hearing Birds of Fire for the first time in high school. It was quite a shock.
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Same here...I was in High School & was beginning an interest in Jazz/Fusion. An uncle bought me a Downbeat subscription...and I went out & bought Birds Of Fire, Mysterious Traveler (Weather Report), & No Mystery (RTF).
Needless to say, I was blown away...not fun, though, wishing I could play that stuff!
:)

How about McLaughlin (on acoustic guitar), Corea & Clarke on "Song To John (Coltrane) Parts 1 & 2"?
Totally ridiculous...

Of course, many of the great fusion pioneers came from Miles Davis' Bitches Brew era. That has always been difficult for me to listen to, but again, anyone getting into the fusion thing needs to have that in the library IMO.
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I also bought Bitches Brew in the same time frame 'cause it was heralded as the 1st Fusion album...well, it took years for me to like it...totally unlike MO & RTF. Early Weather Report (pre-Jaco for sure) was coming a bit outta the Miles/BB bag.

Miles' Fusion albums...(Panagea, Agharta, Live @Fillmore East/West, Dark Magus, Circle In The Round, Black Beauty, Live-Evil, On The Corner, Jack Johnson (w/ McLaughlin), Festiva de Juan Pins, It's About Time (w/ the 3rd Great Quintet...not many recorded sample around of this 5-tet), et al-
...worth checking out.
Caveat: Maybe not what many think of when they hear '70s "Jazz Fusion"...i.e. NOT "Djent".
;)
 
#44
tkozal said:
His old book on how to play jazz is great.
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Diesel Kilgore said:
Is that book still around or a pita to find?
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Back in the day, there were not many books "for bass"...I recall buying Rick Laird's Jazz Riffs For Bass & T-Bone Wolk's Rock Riffs For Bass on the same day.
Honestly, Laird's book, IMO, was all about scales & modes...I got much more outta Wolk's book (Rock, Pop, Soul, Funk, etc with examples of current players' styles/lines).

http://www.amazon.com/Jazz-Riffs-Bass-Rick-Laird/dp/0825622050
Laird's book on Amazon (different cover than what I had...opt for the USED copy!).:)
 
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#47
Diesel Kilgore said:
As a lover Jazz and of Djent metal. I recently discovered The Mahavishnu Orchestra and I am blown away to be honest. I am not shocked that the fusion movement of the 70s was this good, but that it is so obscure. Maybe not? But it seems like great technical music gets overlooked. Maybe Djent in 40 years will be something people will stumble on like I did this?

I am extremely happy I discovered this for myself. Its timeless and is so up my alley. Had to create a thread about it.
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Great discovery! As the saying goes, 'when the student is ready, the teacher will appear'.
 
#48
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#50
JimK said:
More recent Corea/McLaughlin-
The Five Piece Band

http://www.amazon.com/Five-Peace-Ba...55950114&sr=1-1&keywords=five+piece+band+live

Hearing this brought me back about 30-35 years.

A recent Fusion 2012 release-
Spectrum Road.
http://www.amazon.com/Spectrum-Road/dp/B007G9OO4G/ref=pd_sim_b_1

Anybody?
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Saw the Five Peace Band at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor a few years back, with Brian Blade on drums. It was very cool, because it was, I believe 35 years almost to the day when Chick and John played there with Miles. Pretty cool!!! Brian Blade made that band SWING versus the more traditional fusion chops of Vinnie on the earlier European dates. Wonderful show.
 
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#51
JimK said:
Miles' Fusion albums...(Panagea, Agharta, Live @Fillmore East/West, Dark Magus, Circle In The Round, Black Beauty, Live-Evil, On The Corner, Jack Johnson (w/ McLaughlin), Festiva de Juan Pins, It's About Time (w/ the 3rd Great Quintet...not many recorded sample around of this 5-tet), et al-
...worth checking out.
Caveat: Maybe not what many think of when they hear '70s "Jazz Fusion"...i.e. NOT "Djent".
;)
Click to expand...

Heh! Reggie Lucas and Pete Cosey were seriously twisted, mutant guitarists though.
 
#53
Diesel Kilgore said:
As a lover Jazz and of Djent metal. I recently discovered The Mahavishnu Orchestra and I am blown away to be honest. I am not shocked that the fusion movement of the 70s was this good, but that it is so obscure. Maybe not? But it seems like great technical music gets overlooked. Maybe Djent in 40 years will be something people will stumble on like I did this?

I am extremely happy I discovered this for myself. Its timeless and is so up my alley. Had to create a thread about it.
Click to expand...

I saw them live about 1974 ... very good concert.
 
#54
buddy, we're going to have to agree to disagree on that one....

i could listen to all that 70's stuff all day, and it sounds just as good and fresh as when it first came out.

listen to DANCE OF MAYA or NOONWARD RACE....has anything been made before or since that even comes close... (if it has, please turn me on to it)

sure, there is some good stuff being made now, but where would the likes of victor wooten be without those broad 70's fusion shoulders to stand on.

jaco may not (quite) be technically the "best" anymore, but he opened our eyes to what the bass could do....he was a lead instrument in much of Weather Report.

i mean no disrespect by this post, but i urge you to give a systematic listen to a bunch of records by all the 70's fusion greats...you may find that they really aren't so dated after all.


__________________
I gotta second this

I have many fusion stories and even though I'm predudice I too woukd like someone to point me to 'better quality' music, please, please send links;) I miss real high-energy improv

I really could use some contemporary inspiration - it happens, Esparalda, Richard Bona, et.al., but not on the level of the
70s-80s

actually working on classical pieces because of the challenge
 
#55
pnchad said:
__________________
I gotta second this

I have many fusion stories and even though I'm predudice I too woukd like someone to point me to 'better quality' music, please, please send links;) I miss real high-energy improv

I really could use some contemporary inspiration - it happens, Esparalda, Richard Bona, et.al., but not on the level of the
70s-80s

actually working on classical pieces because of the challenge
Click to expand...

Again, we all like what we like. As an older player who is still working at a professional level, I try to keep up with what is going on. I was 'there' when this music came out, and saw most of the greats, and actually performed some of this music live regularly when it was moderately popular, even with a 'non jazz' general audience.

IMO, once one says 'there is no music today that is as good as the music from yesterday' you are (IMO again) dead as any sort of artist. It was like the last of the big band guys railing about how the Beatles sucked and that 'guitar bands' were all a bunch of no talent wankers:D.

Again, nothing wrong with that, just explaining how, even at 55, I continue to try to grow, and keep up at least to my ability with what is going on today. That doesn't mean I can't listen to Inner Mounting Flame every couple years and dig the heck out of it:p
 
#56
KJung said:
Again, we all like what we like. As an older player who is still working at a professional level, I try to keep up with what is going on. I was 'there' when this music came out, and saw most of the greats, and actually performed some of this music live regularly when it was moderately popular, even with a 'non jazz' general audience.

IMO, once one says 'there is no music today that is as good as the music from yesterday' you are (IMO again) dead as any sort of artist. It was like the last of the big band guys railing about how the Beatles sucked and that 'guitar bands' were all a bunch of no talent wankers:D.

Again, nothing wrong with that, just explaining how, even at 55, I continue to try to grow, and keep up at least to my ability with what is going on today. That doesn't mean I can't listen to Inner Mounting Flame every couple years and dig the heck out of it:p
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Bravo Ken. I'll turn 60 in a couple of months, and would honestly rather listen to Rihanna than Mahavishnu for the most part -- and I loved MO in its first incarnation, in the context of that time. Reliving the 60s, 70s, 80s? No thanks! If any of this is new to you, completely different story, of course.

Personally, I'm hoping the OP will point me at some Djent that'll wake me from my nap...;)
 
#57
Passinwind said:
Bravo Ken. I'll turn 60 in a couple of months, and would honestly rather listen to Rihanna than Mahavishnu for the most part -- and I loved MO in its first incarnation, in the context of that time. Reliving the 60s, 70s, 80s? No thanks! If any of this is new to you, completely different story, of course.

Personally, I'm hoping the OP will point me at some Djent that'll wake me from my nap...;)
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:p I lost interest in the Mahavishnu when Cobham left the first time:p
 
#60
KJung said:
Again, we all like what we like. As an older player who is still working at a professional level, I try to keep up with what is going on. I was 'there' when this music came out, and saw most of the greats, and actually performed some of this music live regularly when it was moderately popular, even with a 'non jazz' general audience.

IMO, once one says 'there is no music today that is as good as the music from yesterday' you are (IMO again) dead as any sort of artist. It was like the last of the big band guys railing about how the Beatles sucked and that 'guitar bands' were all a bunch of no talent wankers:D.

Again, nothing wrong with that, just explaining how, even at 55, I continue to try to grow, and keep up at least to my ability with what is going on today. That doesn't mean I can't listen to Inner Mounting Flame every couple years and dig the heck out of it:p
Click to expand...

well, i don't think i exactly said that (or if i did, i mis-spoke)....what i meant to say was, i am not aware of any music being made that is as good as the old stuff....i do stand to be corrected, and I like Esperanza Spaulding, Victor Wooten et al, but i still have my beliefs.

i look at it like classical music....it's like saying Bach was no good once Mozart came along and Mozart was no good once Beethoven was there (and, of course, i realize that is not what you have said at all...i believe you have just said you've moved on)

I look at it like Bach is great, Mozart is Great & Beethoven is great...all different but great in their own ways.

it is simply, for me, no music (at least jazz) has affected me and continues to affect me, like that great old 70's jazz, and i remain in the search for something that does

if it was good (or great) once, it's still good.

davesignatureII-1.png


ps-edit...oh, and there was a mention a few posts back of ZAPPA....zappa was phenomenal...what was he? progressive, jazz? really don't know, but if you like burning, sizzling guitar, listen to some frank zappa....personally, i think his best album was Hot Rats, but draw your own conclusions...again, we have not seem his like since.....and i regret that.
 

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