Al Di Meola has a very interesting, staccato picking style over muted strings that is very fast and accurate. His albums also have meticulous, audiophile grade production values. Lately, he's been playing acoustic guitar duets with emerging phenom Matteo Mancuso which are definitely worth checking out. Though his music is more fusion than classical jazz, his compositions are always intriguing and reflect various influences from Flamenco as well as Mediterranean rhythms. Great reaction Harri! Welcome to the jazz fusion rabbit hole. There's a live performance with Al Di Meola, Paco de Lucia and John McLaughlin called Friday Night in San Francisco that is a crown jewel in most record collections. Highly recommended.
Yes, Matteo truly is an upcoming Great in the guitar/music scene. He has a distinctive style/sound and with his trio he also is creating a unique Fusion style. Rick Beato has done an interview on YT with him lately...
Nice reaction Harri! I think it’s good to know, as mentioned in a couple of other comments, that he was still at Berkelee School of Music in Boston when he was selected to join Chick Corea’s band Return to Forever in the early 1970s. Chick Corea’s compositions were complex, structured, and contained sequential musical “movements” in each “song”, and it’s clear the Al diMeola wrote his own music in a similar vein. I was lucky to see him play live in NYC a couple of times in the late 1970’s and saw him play with the great Jan Hammer on synthesizer/keyboards (who played on the track you just listened to) and they both kept the structure but also improvised off one another as jazz musicians typically would. His live concert energy was amazing and they were some of the best concerts I’d ever seen. He was one of the great jazz/rock fusion musicians of that time with a strong latin/flamenco/ classical guitar influence. He has continued to explore all of this through the years and his recent music is still fantastic.
I love this album. And that's "elegant" gypsy and not "elephant." I hope you'll listen to some of the other songs--Like Mediterranean Sundance. You will love it.
Take a listen to " Live Friday Night in San Fransisco". Three guitarist, Al being one of them, along with Paco De Lucia and John Mclaughlin.Incredible album.
Bought this on vinyl when it came out. Before I had a chance to put it on, a bunch of guys came over, so we all listened to the whole album for the first time whilst partaking of the "herb." Minds were blown.
I listened to Al a lot back in the day. I liked a lot of 70's fusion bands, and I still do. Return To Forever and Brand X were two of my favorites. Later I got into newer fusion bands like the Aquarium Rescue Unit.
Its really hard to pick a #1 guitarist....but Al is definitely right there with whoever else pops in my mind later... Give me "Kiss my Axe" all day....
That s the Top of electronic jazz ! Loved him for many decades ! Elctric or Acoustic pieces are great ! i love the Album Electric Rendez-vous ! always been part of my music collection ! 😎
Wow! I only know this from his Live Tour De Force album. Whatever he produced was beyond belief, the Stevie Ray Vaughn of Jazz/Fusion. The live version is phenomenal!!
Harri, Thanks for this reaction. I have a challenge for you ... a song request. There was a little known supergroup in 1976-77. It was called "Go" or officially "Stomu Yamasta's Go." Go means 5 in Japanese, and the 5 primary players were: Steve Winwood Al DiMeola Michael Shrieve - Santana drummer first 7 albums and Woodstock Klaus Schulze - pioneer of Krautrock and electronic keys Stomu Yamashta - percussionist Please play the song Ghost Machine ... you will appreciate Al DiMeola on electric guitar, plus the drumming of Michael Shrieve. Play the live version from the "Live From Paris" album ... 3:42. My favorite song from that album is "Crossing the Line," but Al DiMeola doesn't play lead due to a slide method used ... another reactor was kind enough to play it, and he loved it. Anyhow, the 5 musicians are all either stars or pioneers in their genre. It's amazing the sound as they all come from different styles.
The entire Elegant Gypsy album is astounding but you must hear Mediterranean Sundance. It's a duet between Al & Flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucia. This album came out when I was 19 and I wore it out.
First time reading comments that I truly feel I’m among my people. Every song on this album is a banger. Race with devil on a Spanish highway is a great work out song. Anthony Jackson on Bass Steve Gadd on drums, Mingo Lewis on percussion, and Jan Hammer on keys, all on top of their game on this disc. One of my favs
Al is a virtuoso guitarist. Thank you for reacting to one of the finest guitarists ever. No one else reacts to this stuff....this is why I follow you. At his concerts the first three rows are other guitarists who want to see the master.
Just saw Al and the Electric Band here in Austin last Saturday night. Phillip Saice on keyboards, the fabulous Gumbi Ortiz on percussion, Luis Alicea on drums and Elias Tona on bass. He played older stuff all night, playing the Les Paul that he said he hadn't played since the 'Elegant Gypsy' album. This was the fifth or sixth time I've seen Al. I prefer his electric stuff, but his acoustic shows are also killer.
Thanks for the excellent video and reaction. What a fantastic song from an amazing musician. Hoping Al fully recovers from his heart attack last year. I myself had a heart attack last year, and have heart disease, it is worrying times.
I first got into Al Di Meola in the late 70's when he was playing with Return To Forever with Chick Corea on keys and Stanley Clark on bass and Lenny White on Drums. and then Al Di Meola went solo and really got into his first few solo albums. especially the first one. I always considered it progressive Jazz but with allot of latin influence.
Al Di Meola was and still is a stellar guitarist. But you have to have a taste for his style. Al played so fast that some think he invented "shredding" but I don't see that myself. He was a jazz player and always leaves room in his compositions for his other players to shine in their own ways.
A spellbinding fusion guitarist, Al first rose to prominence in the 1970s as a jazz-rock pioneer before embracing a globally expansive mix of sounds. - Edited excerpts from AllMusic "Elegant Gypsy" is regarded as one of his best early albums. It's a blend of jazz fusion, Latin rhythms, and progressive rock. Other standout cuts are "Mediterranean Sundance" and "Race with Devil on Spanish Highway." Al has released numerous acclaimed albums throughout his career and remains highly regarded.
It reminded me of the music of the 70s, the group Gentle Giant or Frank Zappa, very original, I can listen to this music for hours, especially with headphones.
His first solo album. Was a member of Chick Corea’s band Return to Forever; considered by many to be the founders of Jazz Fusion. If you liked this piece, you’ll love the rest of the album.
Hey, try listening to "Friday Night in San Francisco!" Featuring John McLaughlin, Al Dimeola and Paco de Lucia!!! I've NEVER heard such speed and accuracy ever on guitars when I heared this in the 80s!!! During one of their riffs, they break into the theme from "The Pink Panther!"
Another master of the guitar, a beautiful tune with such talented artists and appealing instruments that deliver an array of different genres. So entertaining. Great reaction Harri. Thanks Harri and Michael. 👏👏 Cheers from Canada 🇨🇦
The whole album is this good. His work with Chick Corea, may he RIP, is also tip-top. Specifically Return to Forever's "Romantic Warrior" album, or "record" as the young whippersnappers are calling it. The reason he is so good is that he learned Doc Watson early on. BUT he though Doc was playing with a pick instead of five fingers.
Al DiMeola and Paco DeLucia perform an acoustic guitar duet you must hear. "Mediterranean Sundance". It is also from the Elegant Gypsy album. Listen to the studio version first. It is beyond belief.
Great you enjoyed it - but how about a reaction to just how incredible his guitar playing is? Considered One of the fastest to have ever lived, most technically brilliant guitarists of all time. He sounds like he is plucking the notes - that’s how clean his sound is. He is also a big inspiration on today’s current shredders - who let’s face it, do not have the same melodic emotion that Al Di Meola emulates. The guy is a living god
I've seen Al perform live a number of times. He' never disappoints. I've seen so many reaction channels through the last few years. This maybe one of the best because of the various genres and how you describe the music. I've also noticed that I could never get one of the other channels to react to any of my suggestions. I'm sure they get a lot of requests but not at least one. I'll give it a shot with yours. Check out Return To Forever -"Jungle Waterfall" from the album "No Mystery." Listen for Al to tear it up.
Brilliant Harri . Since his days with Chick Corea and the Return To Forever band , his legacy is undeniably Top Shelf . Al's Collab with young Italian guitarist Matteo Mancuso features perhaps a younger version of himself , and then some ! From Al's own words , mind you . Matteo Mancuso is the Guitarist's "Guitarist" .
Do yourself (and us) a favour and check out "Race With The Devil On A Spanish Highway"... and - it´s "Elegant Gypsy" ;-) 70s man (1977 here)... Jan Hammer,/keys, Anthony Jackson/Bass, Steve Gadd + Lenny White / drums and so on. The Who Is Who in Fusion at that time, I had the luck of having grown up with this!
Elephant Gypsy Suet?!! Lmmfao!! Elegant Gypsy Suite (rhymes with sweet 😂) A technical wiz who mostly left me cold when I bought this album in the mid-70s. Here, I can appreciate it somewhat more as a guitarist and music lover. It's pretty 🔥, innit? Saw him once with John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia, both of whom I much prefer. However, the opening set by ex-Dixie Dregs guitarist Steve Morse had more to recommend it; compositional heart, improvisational fire, plenty of technique in service of the previously enumerated musical goals. He joined the other three to wrap up the evening and continued his ascendancy in my eyes. 😊🤙🏼🎸🎶❤️✨️🕊
