I dip into two stalwarts of jazz fusion this week - two bands I know very little about despite having tried half heartedly to acquaint myself with their charms in the past: Weather Report and The Mahavishnu Orchestra both make their 6 Album Sunday debuts.
Checking out the forums I alighted upon the apparent best albums of both bands: Heavy Weather and The Inner Mounting Flame respectively. Both entirely instrumental the two albums nevertheless have quite different feels. Heavy Weather from Weather Report is very easy listening as demonstrated by the opening hit and jazz standard Birdland with its chirpy melody and squishy fretless bass. To be honest it doesn't really grab me on first listen and I'm surprised at the critical acclaim bestowed on the album and the band generally. But that is the case, so it must be me?
This is always a question in the back of my mind at Bamyasi HQ?
Just because something is universally critically acclaimed (whether a book, film or album) must we all like it?
I realise this is different from "popularity". I'm not talking about commercial acclaim as demonstrated by popular sales - that's something else entirely. But then we are moving towards controversial territory by implying that critical acclaim is superior to popular acclaim.
The correct answer to the question is of course no and all art appreciation is personal...
... (but the nagging feeling remains that to not appreciate something critically acclaimed may imply something lacking on one's own part).
Anyway, honesty, is the best policy, generally, and the counter argument to one's implied deficiency is the calling out of a "sacred cow" and there are many of them in my (honest) opinion (IMHO). Actually that's a good idea for a blog post Ed.
That's a long way of saying I don't really get the Weather Report album, but I will try again. This album is from 1977, and the band's 7th, by which time I imagine much of the rough and exciting edges from the jazz fusion movement had been honed down.
No such navel gazing and self reflection with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. This is amazing music. It's a full on assault on the senses - brilliant musicians playing progressive jazz rock at breakneck speed. I would venture it is more rock, or progressive rock, than jazz, and that must for a large part be due to the brilliant electric guitar work of John McLaughlin.
McLaughlin redefined the role of guitar in jazz, Cobham the drums and the band set new standards in ensemble cohesion. They did it without sounding glib, a trick their legion of followers never fathomed.
Jazzwise
The progressive rock comparisons lead me to realise how much they sound like King Crimson in their heavier instrumental passages - both from that band's prog rock heyday circa 1973/4 and in their most recent reincarnations as detailed in log #208. Listen to the start of The Dance of Maya for instance and tell me that doesn't sound like a Robert Fripp riff (indeed the music-map does show a connection):
Brilliant stuff, but not for the faint hearted. I will explore further albums from The Mahavishnu Orchestra although I think they only made very few (certainly from this era - The Inner Mounting Flame was their debut released in 1971).
THIS WEEK'S SELECTION:
Camel - The Single Factor
Asia - Asia
Weather Report - Heavy Weather
Depeche Mode - Violator
The Mahavishnu Orchestra - The Inner Mounting Flame
ABC - Beauty Stab
The Single Factor from Camel was the band's 9th album, released in 1982. Apparently there was pressure from the record company Decca to produce a hit single (where have we heard that before?) and there are plenty of candidates of which Camelogue was probably the best (I've literally only just realised the name of the album may be a reference to the need for a single).
Were there any singles, hits or otherwise Ed.?
Yes, two singles with A sides of Selva and No Easy Answer, and B sides of Camelogue and Manic respectively. You're welcome, Ed.
ps. No hits.
Manic is a powerful instrumental and the lovely guitar instrumental Selva is a homage to Ice.
Outside the single material Heroes is pretty epic.
But generally a fairly so-so album from the erstwhile prog rockers. I am tempted to declare the previous album Nude was probably the group's last great album. One more album followed, Stationary Traveller, before Decca were off.
Asia were one of those "supergroups" formed out of the ashes of various '70s prog rock bands - Yes, ELP, King Crimson, and err... Buggles. And, not surprisingly with its vintage (1982), it's the Buggles influence that is writ large across this album of easy listening AOR: The keyboards dominate and you rarely hear Steve Howe's guitar.
As far as it goes, in terms of catchy hooks, it's fine pop rock, in the vein of US acts like Journey or Styx - indeed the lead single Heat of the Moment was a massive hit in the US.
Amongst the pap there are a few decent tracks - Time Again hints at what the band could do sounding like a rocky King Crimson a la The Great Deceiver.
I had no idea the band were still going, with 2 original members (Carl Palmer and Geoff Downes) and 13 albums to their name now.
Finally to round out this week's post the best two albums from my '80s retro last week are retained - Beauty Stab from ABC and Violator from Depeche Mode (although the latter was actually a 1990 release but you know what I mean). Really enjoying both these albums although Violator is the one that will have the greater longevity.
