Outside of the ‘big bang’ of Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew, the first true fusion band.
The tune, “Smiles And Grins”, subsequently ended up on his second solo album, Harmony Row.
Last edited:
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Previously unseen Jack/Tony Williams Lifetime
- Thread starter Michedelic
- Start date
Outside of the ‘big bang’ of Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew, the first true fusion band.
The tune, “Smiles And Grins”, subsequently ended up on his second solo album, Harmony Row.
I really dug that version of Lifetime, Larry Young was such a badass.
Nice footage too!
Nice footage too!
Right? It’s a drag that they took so long to issue this stuff(just like some of the recent Midnight Special clips), but at least it’s out there. I’d like to see more(who wouldn’t?). It’s also embryonic Mahavishnu. I much prefer Jack’s solo/collaborative/session stuff over Cream.
That's my favorite Jack Bruce period as well. All the original descriptive words to describe early fusion like, Molten, incendiary etc. definitely described early Lifetime. Not for the faint of heart!
I've been watching this, it came "on my youtube feed"... it's great, also developmentally interesting...
Everyone playing is a leader/creator, no side men. McLaughlin doesn't have a lead virtuoso to bounce off of (Jerry Goodman AND Jan Hammer) but everyone is creating music here within the song, improved transitions, plus just let Larry Young do his thing, was he Khalid Yasheen then? a magician.
If you are a Jack Bruce fan try his work with Kip Hanrahan
Everyone playing is a leader/creator, no side men. McLaughlin doesn't have a lead virtuoso to bounce off of (Jerry Goodman AND Jan Hammer) but everyone is creating music here within the song, improved transitions, plus just let Larry Young do his thing, was he Khalid Yasheen then? a magician.
If you are a Jack Bruce fan try his work with Kip Hanrahan
I'm a Jack Bruce fan and a total jazz/fusion lover, but this is just not my cup of tea. When I think of fusion or jazz/fusion, I think of stuff more like this.
Hmm, I dunno, sounds like a run of the mill prog/fusion hybrid, not very adventurous. TWL, MO, WR, RTF(at least with Connors)was all about pushing boundries and being challenging. And that is a Jack song from HR as I mentioned, such a great album, him unshackled from the restraints of Cream.
Last edited:
That's not fusion! thats some passing tones...--edit out-- This is fusion, The Alphonse Mouzon Band baby! (he was the Bitches Brew alum, you have to have lineage) Larry was innovative to use electrified trumpet, often in unison lead in these bands, both Randy Brecker and Mike Lawrence, both amazing players (using the Mutron III btw) but Mike was a tragedy like many others Clifford, Woody, Lee, Fats, Wallace, Roy
Last edited:
That wasn't really the "first true fusion band."
I wouldn't get too hung up on the Fusion/jazz-fusion label for this stuff... Barry Miles called it Syncretic Music in Princeton and it predated this stuff.
I wouldn't get too hung up on the Fusion/jazz-fusion label for this stuff... Barry Miles called it Syncretic Music in Princeton and it predated this stuff.
IMHO, fusion got too fussy after the first few years. Lifetime had "ugly beauty" (to use a Thelonious Monk title), and were messy and wild. Larry Young brought some eerie sounds, too. I think Jack was such a perfect addition after their first album. He was a genius, and completely fearless. They were all fantastic.
Mahavishnu Orchestra's "The Inner Mounting Flame" was passionate and majestic. Classic.
I loved the first and second Return to Forever albums (with Airto), but they got too slick after that (for me).
Then, in the blink of an eye, it was Jeff Lorber, Spyro Gyra and all that other Muzak.
Yuck!!
Mahavishnu Orchestra's "The Inner Mounting Flame" was passionate and majestic. Classic.
I loved the first and second Return to Forever albums (with Airto), but they got too slick after that (for me).
Then, in the blink of an eye, it was Jeff Lorber, Spyro Gyra and all that other Muzak.
Yuck!!
Last edited:
You've no doubt heard the term "Fuzak" right?
I probably have slightly more patience for post-1st generation fusion than you do, but I agree that as bands got slicker and more precise they seemed to lose a lot of the spirit or fire that made early fusion so intensely captivating. And once musicians started polishing it to the point where sonically it resembled pop or Adult Contemporary music, the whole point was missed; it simply became a showcase for chops.
I've mentioned the Rip Van Winkle concept in threads about prog-rock here on TB before: I sometimes wish a genuinely progressive rock band could wake up in 2023 having never heard any of the 1980s hair metal bands...because I think the thing that sullies a lot of modern "prog-rock" is that there's too much reliance on headbanging triple-rectified hair metal tropes, rather than actually progressive imaginations. Similarly, I somethimes wish a genuine fusion (jazz+rock) band could wake up in 2023 having never heard any of the Smooth Jazz of the late-70s-through-today ...because that Fuzak sound sullies a lot of modern "fusion" music. Great playing, just...ugh, where's the fire? Where'd the teeth go?
