COSMIC MESSENGER

There were four albums of Jean Luc Ponty that became my favorite and I regularly played at my tape deck from my cassette collection: "Cosmic Messenger", "Imaginary Voyage", "Mystical Adventure" and "Enigmatic Ocean". At that time it was kind of change to play these albums after heavily enjoyed other albums from Genesis, Yes, Pink Floyd, Gentle Giant, Led Zeppelin because Ponty's music is a jazz-rock fusion kind of style.

The album kicks off with an ambient keyboard / violin augmented with guitar fills in "Cosmic Messenger" (4:38) which then followed by the entrance of drums and soaring organ sound that fit beautifully with rhythm section. The tempo is medium and the music creates a magic nuance which fits well if you play it very early in the morning with turning the volume at high level. Really good experience and great joy.

"The Art of Happiness" (4:33) has a more energetic beat compared to the opening track. I like the combined work of guitar rhythm section and drums at the beginning of the track, augmented with dynamic bass lines. The electric guitar work during interlude is really stunning even though it's mixed very thinly. I think this is done intentionally and it creates brilliant result because it makes the beat much more obvious as result of the rhythm section is displayed more than the guitar solo. For me personally, this is brilliant idea! Not even the guitar solo, the main composer's violin solo that comes after the guitar solo is also mixed thinly. I guess Mr. Ponty did control his ego really well. Salute!

"Don't Let the World Pass You By" (6:23) begins with wonderful guitar work and long sustain keyboard work with drums as beat keeper. This straightforward structure lasts for about two minutes at the beginning part until the bass guitar and drums take more roles to bring the music flows energetically. What follows is a wonderful solo improvisation between keyboard and violin with dynamic bass lines and drum beats. This part is probably the most exciting part of any Jean Luc Ponty's music that I also find with other album like "Enigmatic Ocean".

"I Only Feel Good With You" (3:05) is a beautiful mellow music exploring keyboard and violin. This is a very song-oriented composition with good melody. "Puppets' Dance" (3:40) brings the music back into an upbeat style with violin solo augmented with inventive bassline. The other three remaining tracks are also beautifully crafted.

In summary, this album is highly recommended, an excellent addition to any prog music collection. If you like bands like Passport, Deodato, Return To Forever, you may enjoy this album. The composition is not that complex as Return To Forever but all of them are wonderfully composed. Keep on proggin' .!

By the late 70's, Ponty's « group » was not even close to its debut line-up, since outside Jean-Luc himself, no one else was still present. But this hardly means that the newer members are not as good (or better) than their predecessor, far from it. But one thing is sure: Ponty's formula is definitely going a little stale by now, with each and every album being systematically a little too close for comfort; Cosmic Messenger is almost incestuously close to Imaginary Voyage and Taste For Passion and you will not be able to tell for sure which album you're on. The problem lies at the very base of the music: this instrumental fusion was also by 78 relatively common, hardly groundbreaking and to be truthful a bit boring.

While the opening title track still sounds exciting, the rest of the first side is rather yawning, unexciting and heard-before while still remaining pleasant and technical. The second side is rather more interesting, but still not worth writing home (or even a dithyrambic review for that matter) about: both Fake Paradise (about angel dust, maybe?) and the excellent Egocentric Molecules are worth a note. While Ethereal Mood is a dreamy atmospheric tune, but failing to evolve much, arouse your interest and ultimately overstaying its welcome.

Yet another late 70's JR/F album. Not the most inspired nor is it the worst either. Just a bit pointless. Désolé Jean-Luc, quand tu en as un, tu les as tous!!!

Another good album from JLP. I find this release more heavy sounding than say Civilized Evil released a year later but nevertheless it holds up very well in the Jazz/Rock/Fusion genre. The album maintains the basic theme throughout and at times the electric violin from JLP is simply awesome. The title track opener is a great song as is ' The Art Of Happiness', ' Fakes Paradise' and ' Egocentric Molecules' the closing track. The album is full of complex arrangements which makes for repeated listening to fully appreciate the wealth of sound it provides.

1977's Enigmatic Ocean was indeed a tough act to follow, given the improvisational and sonic brilliance of one Allan Holdsworth on guitar. So, instead of trying to replicate that disc, Ponty wisely leaned more in a rockier/funky direction for Cosmic Messenger, knowing that NOBODY could match Holdsworth's unique contributions or even get close.

What results is a collection of songs that retain a lot of the characteristics of Ponty's earlier efforts but a bit leaner and meaner sounding. Of the 2 guitarists, Peter Maunu definitely comes up the most distinct sounding with his soaring melodic bluesy rock sound. What I really enjoyed though was the huge punchy sounding rhythm section of drummer Casey Scheurrel and bassist Ralphe Armstrong (I especially loved Ralphe's huge thick growling fretless tone here, deeeeeelicious!). Allan Zavod provides all the appropriately spacey textures with a bank of synths and tosses off some VERY expressive solos, especially on Fake Paradise. Have to admit though I would've loved to hear more acoustic instruments as well to balance it out, as it was a bit synth/electronics heavy.

As for the highlights, Ethereal Mood is beautifully hypnotic with acoustic violin, electronic piano, chiming acoustic guitars, fretless bass and tablas, very beautiful haunting melody. On the funkier/rocky side, Art of Happiness, Don't Let The World Pass You By and Fake Paradise come out swinging.

The one low point for me is the ending tune Egocentric Molecules (corny title BTW!), which sounds more like a mathematical exercise more than it does music. Not one of Ponty's better compositional moments in this Owl's opinion.

Overall, a solid and enjoyable album worth having, but not groundbreaking by any stretch. After this, JLP would seem to just keep making the same record over and over again.

I am fortunate to have seen J-LP a few times in concert in my lifetime--and this tour was the first of them. The concert's opening is forever etched in my mind as one of the most amazing concert memories of my life. Opening with the album's title song, Jean-Luc proceeds to strike such unearthly sounds--more like screams--from his electric violin that people on the floor were literally covering their ears, turning this way and that with panicked expressions on their faces, trying to figure out where this never-before-experienced sound was coming from. It was incredible.

1. "Cosmic Messenger" (4:38) will always be my favorite Jean-Luc song because of the-above-noted amazing concert reproduction. The rhythm section is so tight here--too bad most Americans have never heard of these individual musicians cuz they're great. (10/10)

2. "Art of Happiness" (4:33) great bass and guitar play on this pretty-one dimensional song. (8.75/10)

3. "Don't Let the World Pass You By" (6:23) great synth start with guitars fading into the weave. Drums and bass elbow their way in before lead electric guitar and bass double up to bring in the melody line over a 90-second arc. The band then shifts gears and direction into a very tight hard-drivin' groove within which Alllan Zavod gets the first solo--about a minute's worth of synth magic before he (or Jean-Luc) switches to another synth for yet another minute of great stuff. Then, at 4:10, Jean-Luc is allowed to finally step in with his electric violin. He is so good: taking Zavod's stuff and putting it to shame! An Allan Holdsworth-sounding electric guitar gets a chance at 5:20 with Zavod competing with him just beneath. Great song. Everybody chugging along on full cylinders. (9.5/10)

4. "I Only Feel Good With You" (3:05) a stunningly beautiful song (as Jean-Luc was able to do more than any other J-R Fuse artist), synths and keys over gently-supporting rhythm play from Armstrong and Scheuerell and the rhythm guitarists. (9.75/10)

5. "Puppets' Dance" (3:40) never a favorite as Jean-Luc allows his band to take the Funk Road. Ralphe is good here, but the cowbell is too much. Guitars and violin weave together at first but then back off for Ralphe to show off a bit before returning for a recapitulation of their weave before backing down for Jean-Luc to soar away on his e-violin. (8.66667/10)

6. "Fake Paradise" (5:41) the opening 20-second weave sets up a great foundation for the guitarists and violin to have their time in the sun. Ralphe Armstrong is great. At 1:10 everybody remains steadfast over a suddenly shifting rhythm track. Interesting! Then the band returns to the first weave for a synthesizer to take the first solo. Same rhythmic shift at 2:37 (must be intended as the "chorus") but this is when one of the electric guitarists is given the nod. At 3:55 everybody goes back to motif #1 for Jean-Luc's turn. (8.875/10)

7. "Ethereal Mood" (4:03) another one of Jean-Luc's hauntingly majestic beauties. Keys, guitar, bass, congas, second acoustic guitar, strumming, and then soaring electric violin à la the title song. At 1:34 Jean-Luc recommences his melodic solo but then, at 1:55, there is a wonderful short-shift of guitar strumming before everybody returns to the normal for some loose atmospheric violin play. The dramatic "short-shift" occurs two more times, at 2:49 to 2:57 and 3:08 to 3:18, to great effect as Jean-Luc continues to let us think he's fading off into the cosmos. Great song. (9.75/10)

8."Egocentric Molecules" (5:44) a high-speed classic--Casey Scheuerell's best--with one of the electric guitarists stepping up to take the first solo. After a reset bridge at the end ofth esecond minute Ralphe Armstrong ably steps up to the fore giving us an electric bass solo for the ages. Wow! 3:10 reset. Now it's Jean-Luc's turn. Can/Will he be able to top Ralphe's amazing solo? I don't think so but he comes close, he jsut doesn't match Ralphe's two-note-at-a-time play. At theend of the fifth minute Ralphe's given room to go again, but he holds back due to the horn-like synth at play in the lower end. Incredible tune! Makes one realize how we've been holding our breathes for the past six minutes! (9.75/10)

Total Time 37:47

P.S. Has anyone ever considered all of the guys Jean-Luc has stood toe-to-toe with? Stephane Grappelli, Frank Zappa, George Duke, John McLaughlin, Narada Michael Walden, Jan Hammer, Alan Holdsworth, Daryl Stuermer, Peter Maunu, Joaquin Lievano, Al DiMeola, Stanley Clarke, Ralphe Armstrong, Randy Jackson, Rayford Griffin, Monty Alexander, Patrice Rushen and many more. He must be quite respected on his instrument in order to attract this kind of company.

A/five stars; a masterpiece of fully-electrified, amazingly engaging, jazz-rock fusion--definitely one of the "Classic Era"s Top 20 Jazz-Rock Fusion Albums.

In my memory, the seventies were the peak of Jean-Luc Ponty's career. But these days, listening to his albums, I wonder if that is really so.

This album, like many of Ponty's from this time period, consists of a very talented band playing cool rhythms aound not terribly complex chord progressions, with Ponty providing some great violin solos and sometimes sharing the spotlight. There is little melody to speak of, and few breaks.

But the band is excellent. They take these riffs and soar. Ponty is as good as ever, and his sidemen, including guitarists Peter Maunu and Joaquin Lievano and keyboardinst Allan Zavod (who would later tour with Frank Zappa) also provide fine solos.

The highlight is Fake Paradise that trades a compoung 9/8 6/8 rhythm with a more traditional 4/4.

The album is good, but the live concerts were way better.