John McLaughlin and the Mahavishnu Orchestra - The Collection (1991)

(U.K 1962 - Present)

John McLaughlin was born in Yorkshire on 4th January, 1942. Growing up in a musical family he studied piano and violin from the age of seven and, influenced by American blues recordings, picked up the guitar in his early teens. He first came to prominence in the mid-Sixties playing with various English R&B bands, including the Graham Bond Organisation (with Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker) and Brian Auger's Trinity.

In 1969 he cut his solo debut 'Extrapolation', and although making no commercial impact, it established McLaughlin as a fast-rising star possessed of a dazzling virtuosity. It also attracted the attention of drummer Tony Williams who invited McLaughlin to the States to join his outfit, 'Lifetime'. He subsequently came to the notice of Miles Davis, and over the next hectic 18 months played on two Lifetime albums ('Emergency' and 'Turn It Over') and two classic Davis jazz-rock sets, 'Bitches Brew' and 'In A Silent Way', while finding time to record his second solo album, 'Devotion', in France with Buddy Miles.

At odds with the pace of life in New York, he turned to yoga, gave up meat and cigarettes, and subsequently became a convert of the bengali guru Sri Chinmoy, an event that was to have a profound effect on his life and music.

In 1971 he recorded 'My Goal's Beyond' with Jerry Goodman, former violinist with US jazz-rock band 'Flock', and Panamanian-born drummer Billy Cobham, another Davis sideman. These two stayed with McLaughlin as he put together his Mahavishnu Orchestra, adding Rick Laird on bass and Jan Hammer on keyboards. This band cut two classic albums, 'The Inner Mounting Flame' and 'Birds of Fire' (both heavily featured here) which pushed the genre of fusion music to new heights and suceeded in breaking McLaughlin to a wide rock-based audience.

At its best, as represented by these albums, jazz-rock had the ability to be breathtaking in emotional impact.  At its worst, it degenerated into empty displays of virtuosity and by the mid-Seventies was failing to sustain the interest of critics and fans alike.

Thereafter, his hitherto unimpeachable taste was called into question as he made the self-indulgent 'Love Devotion Surrender' with fellow Chinmoy disciple Carlos Santana. The live Mahavishnu set 'Between Nothingness and Eternity' recorded in Central Park, New York followed in 1973.

Anxious to work with a larger unit, he put together Mahavishnu Version 2, which included violinist Jean-Luc Ponty and Michael Walden on drums, in January 1974. The massively-ambitious 'Apocalypse' (with the London Symphony Orchestra) and the follow-up [masterpiece] 'Visions Of The Emerald Beyond' went along way to convincing critics that a substantial talent was going to waste. 'Inner Worlds', recorded with a slimmed-down line-up, was the last Mahavishu work with McLaughlin.

Band member 1971-1973

He then changed direction in 1975 to form the Indian-based acoustic group Shakti, featuring the violin of Shankar and the tabla of the richly talented Zakir Hussain.

Their three albums - eponymous debut, 'Natural Elements' and 'A Handful Of Beauty' - featured some of McLaughlin's most satisfying work for several years. 

Featured Albums

After releasing another strong solo album 'Electric Guitarist' in 1978, he formed alliances with other artists including Al Di Meola and Paco de Lucia, favouring acoustic guitar over electric and remains a supremely talented player noted for his speed, fluidity and claenliness of style. [Liner notes by Ian Sturgess, August 1991]

This post consists of FLACs ripped from my CD and includes full album artwork and post photos. It should be noted that this release never appeared on vinyl, however it was released on cassette and I therefore consider it to be approriate for the blog.  My only criticism of this release is that it doesn't include any material from their masterpiece 'Visions Of The Emerald Beyond' (a shameful oversight on the part of Ian Sturgess at Castle Records).

However, it does include 3 tracks from his recordings with Shakti which are now hard to find if you are playing catchup with McLaughlin's discography. I was lucky enough to stumble across their debut album on vinyl and intend posting it on the blog in the near future, so stay tuned folks.

Track List:

01  Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  Meeting Of The Spirit  6:53

02  Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  Dawn  5:16

03  Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  Vital Transformation  6:16

04  Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  Awakening  3:29

05 Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  Birds Of Fire  5:44

06  Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  Celestial Terrestrial Commuters  2:55

07  Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  Thousand Island Park  3:21

08  Mahavishnu Orchestra  –  One Word  9:58

09  John McLaughlin  –  New York On My Mind  5:42

10  John McLaughlin  –  Every Tear From Every Eye  6:58

11  John McLaughlin  –  My Foolish Heart  3:31

12  Shakti  –  Joy (Part 1)  7:09

13  Shakti  –  Lotus Feet  4:51

14  Shakti  –  Come On Baby Dance With Me  1:54

The Collection Link (452Mb)