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Showing posts from March, 2012

The Mediterranean Concerto-John McLaughlin

After the revelation of Apocalypse I moved on to Visions and Inner worlds. Both contain artistic coups, great playing, but somehow don’t quite reach that point of fulfilment that Apocalypse does. They are projects full of ideas and sparkle but lacking that roundness and completion that makes them summits and entirely satisfying. Both exhibit a quality from this period shared by other music, a sense of fusing elements that ultimately do not belong together and make something less than the sum of its parts. "Welcome" by Santana. "Sound Chaser" by Yes and Patrick’s  "I" were all brilliant, outstanding but also would have benefitted from slightly less ingredients in the mix.     I had no idea, that with Michael Tilson-Thomas conducting, John had recorded a concerto. Down the years a number of “classical” pieces have been recorded by those who made their name elsewhere. What makes this concerto special is it sounds like an extension of his natural musical per