MAHAVISHNU

First off, block out any notion that this is going to be a 1000 decibel blowout ressurection of the Mahavishnu Orchestra of the 1970`s with amps turned up to eleven with lightning speed guitar solos in fluctuating 11/8 time signatures. The album at the time (1984), recieved a thrashing from reviewers and critics for the high expectations the name Mahavishnu evoked and perhaps McLaughlin should not have used it ( my cospiracy theory is that he was under record company presure to use the name. Mahavishnu = $$$$$$$$$) . Nevertheles, Mclaughlin was not attempting to recapture the intensity of the 1970`s Mahavishnu Orchestra here but rather was conducting an experiment with state of the art digital musical technology. Rearmed with this formidable arsenal of new toys, most notably, the Synclavier guitar synth McLaughlin could of just walked into the studio and said to his bandmates, " OK , I`m just going to plug her in,let her rip and you guys follow me." McLaughlin always had a sophisticated approach to breakthroughs and advances in music gear and instead decided to select eight superbly talented musicians, including original Mahavishnu Orchestra drummer Billy Cobham, sax master Bill Evans and newcomer Swede Jonas Hellborg on bass and write a few compositions around the possibilities offered by the new technology.

The laboratory result from this experiment varies and yielded a few suprises as well as some disappointments. It contains several structured post fusion electric jazz pieces including one written by Bill Evans ( Clarendon Hills) which features some smooth sax playing. Other upbeat funky explorations encourage some degree of excitement from the tight Cobham/ Hellborg rythmn combination with McLaughlin managing a few controlled string bending freakouts which are slightly reminicient of his 70`s fret melting days. He also briefly visits the past with some riffing on the Les Paul Special. Additionally, there are a few short tracks which can`t be considered much more than filler. After giving the album a first listen after buying it in 1984 I just felt wierd. It sounded like McLaughlin had lost his marbles but I occassionally get in the mood for some of the the few high points it offers. The sad part is that some of the material on the album could have sounded better played on a conventional electric guitar while other pieces have glorious starts but resolve into nothing because of the Synclavier overkill. My warning to the potential buyer is that if the sound of the Synclavier guitar synth annoys you like fingernails scratching down on a blackboard then stay away from this one.

Don`t write this one off but approach with caution. 2½ stars. Wounded Bird Records has included it in their catologue since their beginning and it is still available. If you have the chance to give it a listen in a store that carries Wounded Bird that would be my paramount suggestion before forking over the $ 26.