Re-evaluating JOHN McLAUGHLIN after MAHAVISHNU 

As with all bands and artists, I firmly believe it depends on the first record you get. My first JohnnyMac record was Electric Guitarist and it's still my favorite. The songs, his playing and his guests are stellar. The only time I saw him live was with the One Truth Band and my little mind was blown. The energy was there.

I sometimes think that the Mahavishnu period could be considered something of an anomaly in John's catalogue. When you look at what came before it bears more of a similarity to what came after - diverse recordings and projects that reflected his current interests. Notwithstanding the fact that his work in the MO era came to be definitive from an audience perspective, I think that by and large its work was done. It's hard to imagine where it could have gone beyond what it achieved. For all its influence nobody has managed to recreate that particular brand of magic. Right people, right place, right time. At this stage I'm just glad John is still with us and spreading the joy.

Another School night with the very knowledgeable Andy Edwards, Many Thanks.

I had the great pleasure of interviewing and reviewing a show by Mr. McLaughlin, who came through Salt Lake City in the late 1990s. Gracious and open, a pleasure to speak with. Interesting (maybe only to me), while attending a show from bassist Tony Levin in SLC, Levin told a story of McLaughlin calling to ask Levin to join Mahavishnu (Levin had to decline because he had just agreed to join Gary Burton's group). Anyway, Levin received a message about the call from his parents, who told him to call someone named Murry Vishnu.

My personal John's favs, outta the tons of great stuff , those wonderful albums with that killer, beautiful and powerful trio with Trilok Gurtu and Kai Eckhardt..., also with Dominic on bass.

My favorite JM albums (in order of release date): Visions of the Emerald Beyond Natural Elements Que Alegria Time Remembered The Promise Five Peace Band Standout tracks on albums that didn't quite make the cut for me: The Wall Will Fall (Adventures in Radioland) Raju (Floating Point) Being You Being Me (Black Light)

I absolutely love Electric Guitarist and Electric Dreams. Two of John's best albums. He was using a 335 in that era and I loved the tone. Technically, he started Shakti in '74 when he was still in Mahavishnu. I never thought of Shakti as a side project because he was always very dedicated to it and toured a lot with this group. He was just as dedicated to acoustic as electric. I loved Friday Night in San Francisco. Three of the world's greatest players on acoustic. It's a fun album, full of energy. You can tell they were enjoying themselves. My dad played this album a lot on the turntable. So did my uncle, a drummer. I grew up with this music. In fact, I remember seeing John on public TV with Mahavishnu when I was three. I remember my uncle raving about how great the band was. I remember John playing that double neck Gibson SG. He was the first guitar player who made an impression on me, and he did so when I was only three. The next player who really knocked me out was Knopfler when I heard Sultans of Swing, which my dad played on the home and car stereos all the time. McLaughlin, Knopfler, Clapton, Beck and Page were the first players who made a big impression on me, and when I picked up guitar at the age of eleven, after pickup up piano (lot literally they're too heavy!) at six and trumpet at nine, all these influences guided me. I never got to their level, but I had a focus that helped me discover who I was as a player.

Hello Andy, I greatly enjoyed your video. All the points you put across are spot on. Like all great artist they express through their art the lives they are living. John at the time of the Mahavishnu Orchestra was living a life of great spiritual discipline. John was the driving force of the MO and would not of made such a great impact on music in general and on people's lives, if he had not been practicing such a life. He was seeking the divine that is all dynamic and transcending. John is a very sincere person, MO's music to me has no pretensions and it will endure for a long long time. In 1975 Visions of the Emerald Beyond came out, let us say something did happen in John's life that pulls him away from the life he had been living. By the time Inner Worlds comes out I don't feel he turned his back on that music but that 'something is gone', you are right! Keep posting I'm enjoying your videos. Thank you.

Thanks Andy for your insight and passion for John's music expressed equally with improved name pronunciation!

1:00 JOHN MICK-LOFF-LIN - That's the way he pronounces his own name in promotions. The clearest example of this is the video entitled, "Shakti 50th Anniversary Album and Tour Announcement (Abstract Logix)" on this platform. EDIT: Another example is the video entitled, "John McLaughlin & 4th Dimension coming to the NCH" from this year. It's how he says it, man. Fascinating video - thank you. Peace and love

I totally agree with you on Meeting Of The Spirits. That live version with John, Larry, and Paco is sensational. I've lost count the number of times I've watched the video of it. My favourite releases John did post 70's Mahavishnu are the Guitar Trio albums.

That was great. I loved it. I do like his soft happy side too but the original Mahavishnu is incomparable to basically everything else.

In 71 the Inner Mounting Flame changed my guitar playing forever.

I've always felt that John was always two steps ahead of our expectations of him. When you finally get used to what he is doing he changes everything and it takes a while to adjust if ever.

I first heard John McLaughlin just as he was ending the Mahavishnu Orchestra in '76. I first saw him live with Shatki in '77. The music was incredible, the shows were sold out, but we knew that eventually John would come back to electric one day and we would rejoice when John Mc returned to creating new amazing Mahavishnu music. Live, The One Truth Band with L. Shankar on violin came close at times, but that was over 30 years ago. Eventually we just gave up on the dream that the hot Mahavishnu music of '71-'75 would ever return.

An artist's albums often act as a diary of the significant events in their life, which shapes their emotional state. As human beings they don't live in a musical vacuum, and they change, develop and adopt new priorities. Musicians also run out of new ideas. Thats when you do the American songbook and re- master your back catalogue, or release alternate takes, or sell your publishing.

What to say Andy - brilliant ! Your analysis and thoughts are so spot on , they match my thoughts as well . I am about 10 years your senior and I was lucky enough to discover JMc on a Larry Coryell Lp called Spaces and loved his jam w Coryell on Rene's Theme - VG lp as well w BillyC , Miroslav V, Herbie Hancock ... so I picked up Inner Mounting Flame bc of McL and was happy to see Billy C on it and I had seen Jerry Goodman with the FLOCK at the Fillmore East - and already was a fan . ( My dad was a NYC 1st chair violinist in the 30's so I had listened to a lot of Violin , but not a Blue electric one w a wawa peddle ! I saw the original MO several times - they played my Queens College -and I wrote my 1st review for the College newspaper . The year before I had taken a 20th Century Music course and interviewed J McL - he owned an Indian/Vegetarian restaurant , in service to Sri Chinmoy less than a mile away in Jamaica Queens NY - and he used to inpromptu play acoustic Indian instruments at the restaurant while I was eating there ! One day he was playing and they knew me there and they told me not to go bc Jan Hammer was coming . He did and they jammed w Jan on bongos - then we all went down to the basement to watch them play ping pong . I saw MO open for Gentle Giant at the Felt forum MSG - and also saw MO with Zappa - wonderful memories of all. Also saw MO w the Apacolypse band in Central Park . I am a big blues fa.n so a fav of original MO - Dance of Maya - amazing jam w the 2 melodies - also loved his Shakti - Get Down and Sruti . Saw his last tour with 4th Dimension - agree - notes - no fire - also when I saw his last Shakti last year - I found myself focusing on the singer and tabla - no thing special from him . In closing I agree and thought so at the time - mcL plays best when he is pushed ( original MO ). I remember listening to him and Billy warming up with each other b4 e show - both just riffing and leading each other - and stopping at the end exactly of the others lead . Amazing ! So as far as the darkness - my feelings about McL from meeting talking and his history - he is/was a genuis and had a lot of energy and trying to find a channel for it - so first drugs , I ll assume ( Devotion lp ) and then guru - but as you said - the early 70's - and 1st MO - they all played to create an Inner Mounting Flame of passion - that was their time - Super Groups have their time and them they burn out - say CREAM - after Wheels of Fire - it seemed to become a personal battle ,then almost Noise - hope you listen and read - keep up the great work - Ken Shankman

I was at the RFH for that gig in '89. So glad it came out on vinyl afterwards, I agree that was an incredible band. I will always remember so many people wanting to shake his hand at the end of the gig. I also had an (admittedly chemically enhanced) experience of hearing that music as if it was language, I could hear what they were literally trying to 'say' with each note. Yes, difficult to put into words now. But I agree that the real body of work is '68 to '79. His relatively recent reunion with Santana at Montreux proved your point, much of the intensity is gone now. He's too comfortable, unlike Fripp (see recent KC documentary) who still has the sense of torment running through everything.

I suspect some of this goes back to something you mentioned in a recent video, that how we react emotionally to music is sensitive to the context, in terms of what we are hearing and have heard, and the emotional state we are in at the time. I remember when Inner Mounting Flame just came out - there was nothing else like it, in its mixture of intensity, compositions and virtuosity. At times, it seemed as if each member of the band was trying to drive things harder and harder. But then, the band members get a bit more mature, they go on to other musical opportunities, and the audience gets more mature as well. Can you catch lightning in a bottle at will? Relationships within the band are also a factor, if they see their role as doing all they can to improve the music, they will play differently than if they see their role as that of a backup to the lead player. You brought up King Crimson in this, contrasting how Fripp has approached music over the years compared to McLaughlin. While KC had retained a darkness in its various versions, it has not gone on continuously. Fripp has disbanded KC several times when he sensed an end point for that version of KC, and then would go five years or more before forming a new KC line up. In the interim, he did things that were quite different - studio work, soundscapes, teaching. Much of his playing in those is less dark and frenetic. As for McLaughlin, I suspect that he feels that he needs to change directions every now and then as well, to keep from getting bored or stale.

This should be a good one, who am I kidding ............ they're all Damn good.

McLaughlin is flaming raptors rising in ambush from the pits of hell after lulling you with pretty music. Spectacular rainbow raptors!

The problem for me is not "why doesn't J M do what he did in Mahavishnu", the problem for me is why are there not any other bands doing music like this, (and I don't just mean energy and frequency's). It takes a certain kind of courage to do music this raw, free and open, and maybe it is best left to the energy of youth. J M had big asperations with Mahavishnu and he delivered it with guys who where on the same page. Were are the musicians who are willing to put their lives into their music at this extent today? Plus there is not the industry for a band like this to happen. I'm still trying to create my own risky ideas, came close in the past with something I can feel proud of, and I'm still striving, but again there is no industry for me, (or the veniews willing to pay for it).

Thanks I just found this channel and this is the first video I have watch on JM. I have always been a Mclaughlin fanatic and never have met anyone who loved him as much as I did, so it is great to find this channel and I look forward to watching your videos on JM. I agree with most of what you say here including what your favorite and least favorite recordings etc, so we are pretty much alignment. It is true that after the One Truth Band, I had been more often than not disapointed upon hearing a new JM release. The guitar trio excluded. I am sure part of that had to do with the incredibly high expectations I had due to the quality of his earlier work. The Mahavishnu Orchestra had left an indelable spiritual mark upon me as I was exposed to it during my formative years and reached spiritual climax with it innumerable times. One major criticism I have for his later work was his choice of the Johnny Smith guitar and whatever electronics/effects he was using with it. I had a lack of articulation along with a pecular "sour" sound that was very disapointing. I dare say it is one of the worst electric guitar sounds I have heard a professional guitarist use. I remember being incredibly excited just having bought the After the Rain CD, having seen My Favorite Things on the track listing. Visions of Mclaughlin climaxing on the song as Coltrane had done every time he played it, danced in my head. Unfortunately he was using the Johnny Smith which he played on too many albums, and solo did not even approach the hieghts of a Coltrane nor 70's Mclaughlin solo. I agree with much of you conclusions as to why there was such a drop off in the quality of his music. Obviously, he didn't want to play the same way anymore and he chose to play differently. I still enjoyed his "pretty" style emencely. I think the duets with Katia were fantastic.

Excellent, well done, thank you Andy, I needed to hear this.

Your videos have introduced me to John McLaughlin he is one of the greatest musicians. I love the work he did on emergency album with Tony Williams. Mahavishnu orchestra are out-of-this-world they were ahead of their time. His beautiful music recorded in the late 70s. He's flamenco music is great. Andy your videos are brilliant. He has perfect tone on that guitar.

Natural Elements... YES!

Best 3 minute intro ever! 🙂 Long live John!

I was lucky enough to see John McLaughlin before Mahavishnu. I saw the Tony Williams Lifetime, with Jack Bruce, live at a small venue in Birmingham, MI. The Mecki-Mark Men opened. I love Mahavishnu, but in terms of raw power, this might have been an even more powerful band- no one had heard music like that before. I saw John 3 times with Mahavishnu, twice with Shakti, and once with the Free Spirit band.

What John McLaughlin should have done when he reformed his Mahavishnu in the 1980s, was make an entire acoustic band (acoustic bass, guitar and piano) and bring back those original mahavishnu compositions and rearrange them sort of like he did “meeting” with the trio. He did pieces of it with the duet with Jonas Hellborg years later. It would have been fire! Years later Clapton brought back Layla unplugged and it was well received.

Hi Andy just started watching the episode. John McLaughlin is amongst the top most favs for me outside of Mahavishnu Orchestra. The performance with Kai Eckhardt and Tirlok Gurtu immediately comes to mind. Enjoying every bit of the show. Thanks 🙏

My favorite McLaughlin records, post-Mahavishnu, are "Belo Horizonte" and the first Shakti record. "Belo Horizonte" was my intro to John McLaughlin, and it absolutely FLOORED my jaw. Saw him on tour twice, with Trilok Gurtu and Kai Eckhardt and then with Dennis Chambers and Joey De Francesco.

Great show. Brilliant. I seen John on belo Horizonte tour .I believe it was just him on stage. It was awesome. I really liked frost,IQ too . I checked out what you’ve done. Thanks I watch all shows

Thanks for this Andy. I LOVE John, and have seen him a gazillion times live in various phases of his career and he is inspirational. Yet, I agree that something changed around the early 80's. I never got to see the original MO though. However, the very first thing I ever heard by him was Natural Elements, which I heard IN THE SAME LISTENING SESSION as Land of the Midnight Sun and Secret Agent by Chick Corea. So I heard Chick, Al and John all for the first time on the same day. Lucky me! Mind = blown!

I love his playing on Stanley Clarke's album, "Journey to love"

Your channel for some reason always takes me down memory lane. Your descriptions bring me back to shows that I have been lucky enough to see. There were promoters in Buffalo, NY who called themselves Harvey and Corkey. The Harvey was Harvey Weinstein an infamous character. They owned the old Century Theater in Buffalo, which burned down. They then bought a bar and it was there that I saw, The One Truth Band. The venue was small, and I was no more than 10 feet from my favorite guitar player. Unbelievable show. Tony Smith even bought me a beer. Thanks for the memories, Andy.

I’m not a hardcore John McLaughlin fan, but thoroughly enjoyed that, as seemed a real time genuine analysis of an artist that you clearly love, in a way that only a genuine fan who is also a musician could.

I've been looking for video of John McLaughlin saying his name for a while. Never found any. I've been listening to him for decades and keep hearing it pronounced two different ways.

one of my favorite albums of all times: heart of things live in paris ❤

Here tiz: John suppressed a lot of rage when he was young, he dressed in spiritual image with a deep shadow creature that emerges in his guitar playing. the transcendent stuff is just as valid as the rage. Andy is agreeing with me as I type.

Thanks again Guitar John fan from 1972 - always searching for a sound - and growing

Thanks for your John McL report post Mahavishnu

Ok, so I just finished watching this video -- for the second time. I loved it. And I can relate to it. King Crimson is for me what MO is for you. And while I agree that Fripp has kept his darkness, especially in the 90s and 2000s versions of KC, it's nothing like in the 70s. Don't get me wrong, the 80s band is great, and likely the most inventive version of KC ever. But at this point the band had lost the Hernan-Cortes dimension of it, exploring the uncharted territories, the dark side of the psych, which the 72-74 so masterfully could do, especially live. Another parallel is that when I first heard the Mahavishnu, which in my case was the Emerald album, it was the first time that I felt music could really take me to the dimensions that KC did. What a great masterpiece. And one last example is Mike Oldfield. I do think that Tubular Bells is a great album. Perhaps a bit immature, but an intense and highly original album. And, too a lesser degree, Hergest Ridge -- less dark and more pastoral, but raw in its emotions. As I think you mentioned in your video talking about Oldfield, in the late 70s Mike O joined Exegesis, this self-help group. And that was it. A guy who avoided interviews, calling them even unethical, now was exhibiting his bare chest while soloing and promoting his newest album with nude photos. And his music? Oh dear. His former producer said something along these lines: "I'm sure that the exegesis thing did wonders for Mike's happiness and mental health, but his internal flame was gone. Terrible to say, but perhaps a little bit of anxiety and depression is good for artistic creativity." Indeed. This would be his Trio album, in terms of what you said about John Mclaughlin. Anyway, I really enjoyed and felt represented by what you said in this video. Thank you.

'Friday Night in San Francisco' was the first album featuring John McLaughlin that I bought. Although the majority of the album is live there is one song written by McLaughlin that is a studio recording. That song is titled 'Guardian Angel' and it is superb !

"Re-evaluating the musical work done by John McLaughlin after his departure/disbanding from/of the band, Mahvishnu Orchestra". Concise.

Thank you Andy ❤

A great video Andy and you make many interesting points here. I agree entirely with your comment that modern recording tech takes the heart and soul out of most jazz fusion recordings over the last few decades. I've only seen JM live once (2019) which I enjoyed but recently there was a video on YT (since taken down) of his whole performance at Montreaux 2022 and I have to say his playing on that concert was far superior to what I saw back in 2019 so I find that inspiring that at 80 years of age he is playing better than ever.

John McLaughlin now is about 78 years old. The music he plays now is very mature adult contemporary. Type jazz in the 70s and 80s he was young.and he had that energy you have when you're young. Where he wanted to blow people's brains away with his virtuosity and technique. But I'm glad he's still with us John McLaughlin will always be one of the greatest guitar players of all time.

Very insightful. I think you've answered a question I have asked myself in recent years. The King Crimson / Mahavishnu connection really resonates. I got into KC first and that darkness sucked me in. Then I got Visions of the Emerald Beyond and it was like KC's darkness times 10. Perhaps Fripp is the anomaly in that his darkness never faded as he got older.

One of my all time fave JM bands was the trio with Trilok Gurtu and the rotating cast of bassists. Amazing colorful and dynamic music. I see what you mean about the diminishing effect of his 80's output.Though Belo Horizonte and Music Spoken Here had their moments, something was missing, and I absolutely could not stand Tommy Campbell's over the top octopus on speed drumming. The 80's Mahavishnu had occasional good moments, but the Fuzak-ish music and over-reliance on the guitar synth didn't do much for me. I found the 90's albums with Joey DeFrancesco and Dennis Chambers very enjoyable listening. Again, I love the sound of a B3 and it complimented John's playing quite nicely.

For me JM was always at his best on acoustic. There was generally more delicacy and finesse, compared to the eyeballs out 70s Mahavishnu. Shakti was fantastic and his use of sympathetic strings gave his playing a unique approach. Later, particularly with Paco and to a lesser extent DiMeola, he found new inspiration with jazz and Latin fusion. I think JM just simply peaked in a great experimental period, where so many players where stretching out. Since the 80s jazz fusion for the most part, has slowly dissappated in intensity.

These are great videos Andy. Thanks very much. I found you relatively recently, and find your ideas to be well-founded and thought-provoking. So really your thoughts on John McLaughlin through the years could be attributed to age. Fair enough. And living in the south of France would mellow us all out. Also, I think that the members of the MO fought a lot and were all looking for their next chapters -- Billy Cobham recorded Spectrum with Jan Hammer three months before Beyond Nothingness was recorded live as the MO. I love his playing as well, and am fondest of the MO, but as you said, his pre-MO stuff is also great. I do like the Heart of Things, Floating Point and 4th Dimension stuff, more recently. Also, it's funny your comments on him returning to Ronnie Scott's. I believe that he was playing there with Jack DeJohnette when Tony Williams saw him and subsequently brought him back to NYC. Really great stuff. And anytime that a drummer can talk about chromatic leading tones, I'm impressed. Thanks.

I was at the RFH gig too. It was great. I'm sure you must remember me Andy, I was the tall thin one with the dark hair

I’ve been waiting for this video Andy. I have followed McLaghlin since the early 70s. I’ve bought about everything he’s been connected with. I have very similar thoughts about his catalog. Floating Point is the last album that I routinely play. I’d rather listen to early Shakti than any of the Fourth Dimension records although I play those CDs sometimes. I had tickets to the Warfield theater for his last American tour. At the last moment I sold the tickets as I did not want to go the San Fran. After getting the recordings and watching videos of that night, I’m glad I didn’t go. I thought the overall performances were very lacking. But McLaughlin remains my music guru…I do not see that changing. Thank you so much for this. I needed it!

Extrapolation, one of my all time favourite albums…ever

Goff Lynn Goff Lynn! I love it. It never bothered me. In fact I started referring to him as Mc Goff Lynn. Love your in depth analysis and perusing through your gray matter to make these terrific videos. I’ve been listening to Shakti for the first time ever, as well as Inner Worlds, which I’ve never heard before. Thanks for opening new doors for all.

Great video and analysis! I agree almost completely with your discussion. I have been gathering McLaughlin recordings since early 1972 (and I believe I have almost as much as is possible to own); I've seen the original Mahavishnu live in San Francisco (Winterland 1973), San Diego (UC San Diego -1973 was a stage hand for that show), and Los Angeles (Ahmanson Theatre -1973); saw the John McLaughlin Band (Riverside, CA 1976 with drummer Sonship Theus); and was the lighting board op for Shakti (UC San Diego -1977). I will always champion McLaughlin's musicianship and virtuosity, and as well all of his recordings. However, as you point out (I would add the modifier, in general) post- Mahavishnu Orchestra did loose that something special that drove me instantly to them. The drive and propulsion, and the struggle to reach for something unique and powerful, coupled with the barest of audio effects (excepting Jan Hammer's use of new keyboard technology) producing such an enveloping dark and dirty sound was thrilling and orgasmic, dissapated over the decades, and as such leaves us where you aptly describe. Fortunately, I own many Live bootlegs of the Mahavishnu Orch 1, so music life is splendid. I listen randomly to all his music (except Belo Horizonte, Music Spoken Here, Adventures In Radioland, Mahavishnu) and to varying degrees love them all all, but again, not with the jaw dropping, eye-opening joy of what you call his (theirs) tormented, dark incredibleness. I do need to add though, that there are some worthy of the origininalism in at least the following: The Free Spirits (especially the live cuts at Montreaux and RU-vid vids); The Heart of Things; The John McLaughlin Trio recordings; the Fourth Dimension Live CDs (Boston Recod and Ronnie Scott's); the Five Peace Band; and lastly Liberation Time has some pretty driving hard-bop music. One last point to make (which you mention) is that I think that a large part of this change in McLaughlin's music clearly comes from his material conditions and age. When he first emerged out of England, he was dirt poor, in New York, Yow! Plus he was searching for spiritual/philosophical answers, and trying find his own place in the world -most encompassingly in music. No wonder his music sounded the way it did. Being in his 80's now I'm sure he feels more more at ease with himself, and as you quite rightly describe --he feels joy and want to express this. This video, as is all of your You-Tube ouvre, very astute. I could talk for hours about music with you, especially McLaughlin and Coltrane. I love your stuff, and I am glad you are a teacher. Keep up the goodly fun work!

I think the ambiguity with how McLaughlin is pronounced is due to people with that name pronouncing it differently, depending on whether they have Irish or Scottish ancestry. I understand that the reason John McLaughlin was born near Doncaster in South Yorkshire is that his mother, who taught Piano, left London whilst pregnant with John, to escape the Blitz bombing of London during WW2. I've read that he lived in Kirk Sandall, which is about 4 miles NE of Doncaster city centre. If anyone knows the address he lived at, I'd love to know because I only live about 3 miles from there. If the residence is still in existance, it deserves one of those commemorative Blue Plaques like the house that Jimi Hendrix lived in, in London, has.

Listening to the new Live In San Francisco trio album......absolutely stunning!!! The glory years!!!!! Paco!!!!

I've having whisky shots every time you say his name. I'm absolutely hammered now. 😂

Totally agree about the Royal Festival Hall album. I saw him there the year before, with Jeff Berlin on bass. I also love the Que Alegria alum. Absolutely awesome.

Wunderbar Video Andy Thanks for the reminders of tracks that fell from my rotation, and tracks that I missed completely - - Natural Elements I don’t think I’ve heard before and I love it. Thanks for that. I’m halfway through and will have to finish your Video tomorrow. Appreciate your dedication to proper pronunciation. McGlaughkenssilynn An accomplishment not to go unnoticed. Personally I’m a bit of a pronunciation Anarchist. Sure the locals look at be with bewilderment when I speak, but So What. And when I say biscuit, it sounds like “Bizget”. So there’s that.

There's an old Jewish saying I heard somewhere: "God is not nice. God is not an uncle. God is an earthquake." That, to me, is what Mahavishnu was about.

My first Mclaghlin album was, in fact, his first solo album 'Extrapolation'. Had stumbled upon it by chance in one of e 'bargain boxes' at one of my favourite record stores. Back then, I had only heard him play at Miles's 'In a silent way' album (which is one of my, if not my favourite album by Miles), but never had listened to any of his own stuff. The condition on these cheapos from that box was, you weren't allowed to listen to them in the shop. But as it was really cheap, I bought it anyway. Listening to it back home, I realised what 'heavy stuff' that was. How different it was from what he played with Miles. Way beyond my 'intellectual' means. So, I put it aside for quite a while, and, almost, forgot about him. But, by getting more & more into the contemporary British Jazz scene of the day (I'm talking about guys like Mike Westbrook, Keith Tippett, John Surman, Jack Bruce's 'Things we like' & Tony Williams Lifetime 'Turn it over'), it rekindled my interest in him, and the next one I bought was 'Devotion', which sounded like Jimi Hendrix on speed. But the album that really changed it all for me was 'My Goal's Beyond'. It opened up a whole new world for me. Until then, the only Indian-flavoured music I knew was Ravi Shankar's 'Live in San Francisco' & 'Live at Monterey Pop Festival'. But, 'MGB' got me interested in 'Curry Jazz' & Indo Jazz Fusion as such. Guys like Joe Harriott, John Mayer & Amancio d'Silva became musicians of interest, and 'My Goal's still one of my favourite albums of all time. Well, and then came The Mahavishnu Orchestra. Phew!! That blew us all away, and to this very day I thank the High Heavens to allow me their magical, if not spiritual concert in early 1973, promoting their 2md album 'Birds of Fire'. Later that year, 'Love, Devotion & Surrender' - and that was it. Never bought another of his follow-up albums. No Mahavishnu Orchestra, so Shakti, no nothing. However, I saw Shakti in 1976, but my main focus was on their support act Soft Machine, who I hadn't seen before. I mean, I didn't dislike Shakti, but it (somehow) felt like Ravi Shankar on speed. These absurdly fast guitar runs worked well with the MO, but in context with Shakti, it almost gave me a headache. Over the years to come, I every now & then dipped into some of his releases (Electric Guitarist), but never owned any of those. And, it's only recently (the last 10 years, or so) that my interest in his early work rekindled. Oh, before I forget, in late 1981/early 1982 (not sure), I worked at a few shows for the Guitar Trio with Al di Meola & Paco de Lucia. I quite liked that, and it gave me a chance to (briefly) meet up with them. As I remember, McLaughlin was a fairly accessible guy, Al di Meola being an arrogant bum & Paco being the nicest by far. I really liked his little hash pipe...if you know what I mean. Cheers!

IMO from My Goals Beyond all the way through Friday Night in San Francisco/ Passion Grace & Fire is essential John McLaughlin. There are a few traces of Mahavishnu in his playing such as the end of Seven Sisters from his Heart of Things band (Montreux version). But as a whole that heavenly thrill is gone.

I can go straight to my 1971 rage in my guitar style! Why can't John? Seeing the OG Mahavishnu is indescribable. I saw him jam with Jeff Beck and Jeff just kept cracking up at John's impossible brilliance and he'd throw his hands in the air and tear off a brilliant riff.

Love your analyses Andy. I share many of your prog/fusion experiences and your thoughts always strike a chord. I love that trio concert too and always found fascinating the microphone scraping which freaks Larry and Paco out but John carries on transcendently....

Entertaining as always, Andy has confirmed for me my own suspicions that one of my guitar heroes has lost his dark and angry appeal. I've been watching/listening to John McLaughlin since the early 1960s, but for quite a time now have been a little disappointed with some of his musical output. Like Andy, I count myself a massive fan of one of the most talented and exciting guitarists on the planet, however, I confess to often finding his "Heart of Things" and "Fourth Dimension" bands brilliant but boring. I won't attempt to offer a reason for this because I think Andy has considered John's career carefully and by and large came to the correct conclusion. I live in the south of France so I can understand John wanting us all to enjoy the olives and the wine. Another great discussion Andy, thank you.

A great video, Andy, really illuminating. There is, however, a rapid ticking noise in the background that almost drove me mad :) had to take breaks to finish. Thanks again fir all your great videos

What a good analysis of Mclaughlin's work. He really does rely on the interplay with the other musicians and when the combination is right, magic happens. But that magic hasn't happened the way it did in the 70's since the '70s, it's different. Edit: The Promise which I'm listening to right now is fantastic in its diversity, everything from Shakti like jams to straight up jazz fusion with Dennis Chambers to an insanely good duet with Jeff Beck. There's little filler, though there is one seriously bad tune, the sub Miles Davis Tutu inspired No Return. But the rest makes up for it. I have a bootleg of Carlos Santana and John Mclaughlin from 1973 in Chicago that is pretty fantastic though the sound quality is meh. I wish that was offficially released.

all that joy is killing it 😆

Regarding "Linda McCartney's Glockenspiel". It 's funny because you use a mental trick that we call in Germany "Eselsbrücke" (bridge for donkeys). I appreciate your videos.

It's very *tough* to find a word where "..gh" is pronounced like "..ff" - anyway, you had it right, don't give in to the haters!

when i came out of my youthful metal phase,ans started listening to gong,steve hillage etc,when i saw a pic of john in the white garb,short hair,sandals etc i was used to long hair,denim and leather lol i thought whose this dude.then i heard birds of fire,and i was like,holy shit,fuck metal,this guy is where its at,brutal,out there,explosive playing,with perfect light and shade,so bought everything mahavishnu,solo stuff i could find,shakti blew me away too,but have sort of grooved along with his various styles,obviously like yerself,preferring certain periods/albums to others.his tone has changed,he plays straight through a midi thing live last few years,no amp.he sounded better through a cranked up amp..simply more convenient for touring.theres a vid of birds of fire from the maha/jimmy herring tour,where johns playing a prs double neck,and it sounds fiercer,more like the old mahavishnu tone,and sounds like a overdriven amp.though i did think he sounded good ,few years back,playing a godin freeway guitar,through a 80 watt,mic up,roland xl moddeling amp,which is what i use,where hes using the whammy bar a lot,ala jeff beck style at crossroads guitar festival,i was amazed to see him using the same inexpensive amp as myself,and sounding really good through it.i find john stands back a bit more these days,bit like his mentor miles,and leaves loads of room for his co players,saw them recently at barbical,gary husband,ranjit barot,both incredible drummers,but a gary solo,followed by a ranjit solo,then a dual drum solo,was a bit much for me,more guitar please john.still enjoyed it though

I occasionally go back to 'Electric Guitarist', which is a pretty fine if understated fusion album, but I've always loved the Shakti albums. Of course if you don't care for Indian classical music then these won't be for you, but then you'll be missing some absolutely extraordinary acoustic guitar work...

Welcome to tonights set starring John LindaMcCartneyglockenspeil!

the pre mahavishnu solo stuff was great,mahavishnu was awesome,shakti awesome,one truth awesome,first few post mahavishnu great,2nd mahavishnu,hellborg,evans etc some greatness,too much guitar synth,all the translators,trio stuff interesting,saw him with trios a few times,hes released loads of great fusion albums with 4th dimension band etc industrial zen,abstract logix albums black light ,now hear this etc last decade,great albums ,but they dont stay in the conciousness as much as mahavishnu orchestra,shakti,many of the solo albums

As a 70-year-old-skeletal dancer I am bound by universal law to find the essence of any and all music, including Brian Eno and Harold Budd, who do what Mahavishnu does with one-one-thousandth as many notes. John played better when he fired those blistering rockets in blue rage and frustration and inhuman inspiration. That is called...wait for it...channeling. As an elder I am officially allowed to brag. Andy has never seen anybody dance to silence...I am that guy. O.k. silence maybe but when you see my No Quarter Dance you will believe that an elder can...dance. I dare anybody in L.A. to film me dancing on the Walk of Fame, Hollywood, so I can send it to Andy. Britain, wake up and all of you geniuses in English shade, step into Summer. Good Vibrations, ammi right? Andy, sir: I double-dog dare you to 1) Gather as much "kit" as you can carry for a mile. 2) Set up kit in legal place (performance space outdoors in public IN PUBLIC) and 3) Play anything for an hour to three hours. I did it with homemade drums, played like an idiot on Hollywood Boulevard, for an hour. I laughed myself silly. Homemade mallets, two sticks and a bagful of elastics. I am not a drummer, really, I never could "buy drums", listen to the John/Yoko recording in hotel room with dude on cardboard box - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ftE8vr0WNus.html - a cardboard box. A. Cardboard. Box. Playing that little dibble beat, like effin Ringo. You can't make this stuff up.

I've seen McLaughlin a few times. the first time was in my youth in the early 80s. I was about 21 and he had two shows that night at a little Club in Atlanta called the Moon Shadow Saloon... I stayed for both shows... the first one was great and he tore it up on the second show... can't remember who was in his band but he had a beautiful blonde playing keyboards and they were great. It seems to me that he gave up his Darkness for melancholy in the '80s... you've thought a lot harder about it than I have though. Saw him with Chick Corea I guess 10 years ago and that wasn't that great... but I've always been a bigger prog fan than jazz... good for him though with his olive oil and bread in the south of France. I've learned that art ain't everything.

In your reply, you said you wanted to know more about their 'relationship'. I couldn't comply without slithering into the muddy realms of weisenheimering. Not enough real insight, by far, as well. I just did a few gigs for them , assigned by a (sort of) good friend of mine, who happened to be one of the major tour coordinators back in the day. Along with some other guys/stage hands, my job was to set up all the necessary gear, and, during the show, sit right below the venue ceiling, driving the spotlight to guide them on & off the stage. Nonetheless, as I was allowed backstage, I (obviously) caught the odd glimpse of the 'Gods', eavesdropping brief & random chatters, every now & then. The most, rather only approachable was PdL, being the only one, I actively talked to. JM always seemed to be 'floating' in his own universe & AdM, well, was AdM. Speaking strictly for me, his aloofness might have been anchored in a lack of (overall) confidence, which sounds paradox, considering his status as a musician, guitarist & composer. Skating on (very) thin ice here, it might have been that he was the youngest of them, or, maybe some personal issues I have no knowledge of. What the hell do I know? On stage, however, they (at least at their best moments) melted into one - with three guitars. Having said that, in my personal (humble) opinion, and I have to resort to (bloody) ranking here, PdL was, by far, the most advanced of them all. Not being a musician myself, again I'm trying to wade on the water, but despite all their musicianship & creativity, Paco (for me) comprised something, the other two were lacking. Al's & John's approach seemed (first of all) based on their technical abilities, and, obviously, a good shot of creativity, whereas Paco's approach had something genuine, archaic, and animalistic to it. And, he was the only real acoustic guitarist of the trio. Within Spain, there's only Segovia to match his skills, and worldwide, there's only Baden Powell - who I 'rank' the highest of them all. While Al & John were sitting on their stools while playing, Paco was sitting on an (imaginary) cloud. Sorry for that, John. What the other two had to 'work' for, he (literally) shook off his cuff. And, unlike the others, he never resorted to self-indulgent 'noodling', just for the sake of it. I believe, his sheer skills, so far beyond doubt & scepsis, allowed him to do what the others couldn't do, but at the same time, be totally relaxed about it.Ok, nuff said.

Agree with you in general. How about Miles Davis album Aura the cut Electric Red...pretty dark. I was very lucky to catch the first lineup many times here in Connecticut as he was living nearby at the time. They played most all the Colleges in the area and I saw most all of them. I even had him pull over in his BMW to ask me for directions to one of the venues (which was right around the corner.

Regarding the pronunciation. There are plenty of times when he refers to himself as "John Mc-Loff-lin." (Listen to the end of the "Tokyo Live" album.) He told me that since people in the U.S. pronounce his name that way, that is how he pronounces it when he is in the United States ... and apparently in Japan ;-)

I love In A Silent Way.

Fun Tips: Put Extrapolation on at super-low volume behind this vid. Like jazz wallpaper gone wonky.

The resume You come out of a successful revolution differently than you went in. Apparently he lived healthy during the revolution and even more so afterwards.

Shakti ❤

Even being German, I dare to give a comment on the pronunciation of “McLaughlin”. Doesn’t the name have somewhat Gaelic roots with those strange consonants? There is a way to pronounce the gh softer with slightly breathing H. Like German “Bach”. Not Bak as Anglos like to say, but Bachhh. Can You imagine what I mean?

The Trio plays at Van Gogh's favorite cafe. Vincent screams "you are not gypsies! Out, get out!" - I'm just a sucker for Django.

you’re right Andy!… the bird of fire is gone :(

You've changed McLaughlin's "laugh" for a "Glock" 😂

Very interesting video but iirc the trio was initially with Larry Coryell and Paco De Lucia, Al Di Meola joined when Coryell's drug problems became too manifest.

Spirit is not something you make/play/perform/do/activate/engage...Spirit is what you are. There is no getting spiritual. You can't leave spirit. You can forget, that's it, unless you choose to remember. And so it is...

With that organ player - I had that album and I can't remember the guy's name. It's on the tip of my brain.

Wwhat you call darkness i associate with Karhakali performance of South India. Thw performer takes on the personality of a god or demon. Katia and Marielle Labeque are bound to have influenced his later work. Im a fan.

i have love the Mahavishnu , Shati , remember Shati, Bitches Brew….i’m hoping now JML , B.Laswell.. john Zorn record!

Oh and,'What Need Have I for this What Need Have I for That I'm at the feet of our lord(or summat)all is bliss all is bliss,to such an extent I'm living as a tax exile in Monaco all is bliss all is bliss

DiMeola's playing as degraded, although he's still one of the best damn players on the planet. John still plays at a near-peak level. Given that John has admitted to having arthritic issues with his hands, that's pretty amazing. As for tone, I don't care for the tone either players use these days. Al gave up the Marshalls long ago and John's been using pedal systems right into front of house instead of amps. He says he does this for sound quality, that it's easier for the soundman to dial in a good tone if the stage volume is lower. I can understand this concept myself, and tried it with combos in the 80s and it did work for me. Maybe John sounds better live. I've only heard him on recordings, on videos. But I find his tone very flat. It lacks the dimension he had with the Gibsons.

I call that one Three Dudes Showing Off.

Linda Mac playing glockenspiel - sounds like one of pneumonic devices. I'd get the words backwards.

Oh yeah, a brief postscript. Isn't it quite bewildering, that the original MO guys never got together for one of these inevitable reunions? I don't know, if it;s mere gossip, but I once read that they split up all at once at the end of a tour, or whatever, and never, ever talked to each other, John McLaughlin, respectively, again. Allegedly, to some non-reconcilable fall out. Should anybody know more details.....

I always have disagreement with you when you bring up Contemporary Jazz Fusion wish you call Fuzank, wish I don't thinks it correct spelling. Fusion Music have pretty much been evolving to different worlds of music since its foundation to the present. I'm off the subject but have you heard Steve Smith's Vital Information? Those recordings are hot while been called Fuzank.