Jazz, for me, is always something of an ethereal musical journey. When listening to Miles, Coltrane, Bird etc the wordless stories they tell through their exceptional and unrestricted talent takes me to places musically that no amount of Iron Maiden or Deep Purple lead me…..and god I love those bands.
However, Jazz is, and will probably always remain, next level for me, particularly when taken in the live environment. There are many great exponents of Live Jazz and not many of them can claim to be more emotive and as urgent and powerful in front of a crowd as John McLaughlin . Whether it is his work with The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Miles Davis or his solo work there is always something immediate in his guitar playing and inventiveness that screams at you. So it is with this latest release.
Backed by his 4th Dimension there is creativity of energy flowing out across the twelve tracks on offer. The album includes tracks like “Kiki,” “Lock Down Blues,” “The Creator Has a Master Plan” (featuring the vocal and piano talents of Jany McPherson’s), “Gaza City” and of course the stonewall classic “El Hombre Que Sabía” to close things out.
There is beauty and fire in equal measure on tracks like the Zappa-esque “Mr. DC” and fine five minutes of groove-laden rock with out-there craziness that belies any musical norms.
This live album is a fine example of freedom, exploration and determination to push the boundaries as far as they will go.
Donnie’s Rating: 8.5/10
Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2022 is out now on Ear Music.
