Live @ Ronnie Scott’s (Abstract Logix)
John McLaughlin & the 4th Dimension
Released September 15, 2017
Jazzwise Top 10 Releases of 2017
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7mQl5DexB_oIz0GHaRvh7twaPUf1MZ9H
About:
“Ronnie Scott’s…” mused the boundary-shattering guitarist John McLaughlin, “…where would I be without them?” The venerable London jazz club and its charismatic namesake gave so much to McLaughlin’s career, the roots of which extend as far back as McLaughlin’s stint as a member of the club’s house band in the 1960s. Since then, his pioneering spirit, instrumental virtuosity, and improvisational fearlessness have taken him around the world, put him on stage alongside fellow giants such as Miles Davis and Tony Williams, and has given listeners a series of compelling, revolutionary recordings that have redefined improvised music for generations to come.
On September 15, Abstract Logix issues Live @ Ronnie Scott’s – a souvenir of a sold-out, two-night stand at the beloved venue by John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension, recorded in March of 2017. In the 4th Dimension – Ranjit Barot (drums, konokol), Gary Husband (keyboards, drums), and Etienne M’Bappé (bass) – McLaughlin has gathered a band with the technical dexterity and soulful musicality to do ample justice to his vast catalog. They can follow him anywhere, and together on Live @ Ronnie Scott’s McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension explore everything from early Mahavishnu Orchestra classics to compositions from their most recent studio LP, Black Light.
Most striking about Live @ Ronnie Scott’s is the restraint and fluidity on display: So connected are the band’s four members that the interplay approaches telepathic levels, making for powerfully evocative performances without any wasted gestures. Longtime fans will be thrilled to hear favorites like “Vital Transformation” (from Mahavishnu’s 1971 Inner Mounting Flame album) and “Miles Beyond” (from 1973’s Birds of Fire) reexamined through the lens of the 4th Dimension’s unparalleled sensitivity and facility. Hearing such standards alongside recent compositions like “El Hombre Que Sabia” and the moving “Gaza City” serves to demonstrate the breadth and scope of McLaughlin’s vision, honed over a career now spanning fifty years.
The September release of Live @ Ronnie Scott’s will be followed by the Meeting of the Spirits Tour – a series of November and December shows undertaken in collaboration with one of McLaughlin’s favorite musicians, American guitarist Jimmy Herring. Separate sets by Jimmy Herring and the Invisible Whip and McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension will be followed by the two joining forces for an expansive closing jam based on classic Mahavishnu Orchestra material. These special concerts will also mark McLaughlin’s final shows in America.
As such, Live @ Ronnie Scott’s offers a tantalizing preview of the Meeting of the Spirits Tour. “The intimacy of Ronnie’s brought out some startling playing,” wrote London Jazz News immediately following the shows. “There was no mistaking McLaughlin’s enthusiasm for revisiting these landmark compositions, reconfirming and even rediscovering their quality and longevity.”
Track Listing:
1. Meeting of the Spirits (John McLaughlin) 8:06
2. Miles Beyond (John McLaughlin) 7:34
(John McLaughlin, Grammy Award for Best Improvised Jazz Solo 2018)
3. Gaza City (John McLaughlin) 5:05
4. Here Come the Jiis (John McLaughlin) 10:41
5. New Blues Old Bruise (John McLaughlin) 7:36
6. El Hombre que Sabià (John McLaughlin) 6:47
7. Sanctuary (John McLaughlin) 5:08
8. Vital Transformation (John McLaughlin) 7:45
9. Echoes From Then (John McLaughlin) 12:38
Personnel:
Gary Husband: keys, drums
Etienne M’Bappé: bass
Ranjit Barot: drums, konokol
John McLaughlin: guitar
Recorded live March 2017, at Ronnie Scott’s London
Engineer: Sven Hoffmann
Mixing: George Murphy
Mastering: Andrew Tulloch
Cover design: John Bouchet
Cover photo: Luke McLaughlin
Review:
Not that we’d ever unnecessarily blow our own trumpet, so to speak, but it’s worth mentioning that the CD sleeve text of this ‘live’ highlights compilation from the legendary jazz axe’s memorable two-nighter at Ronnie’s in March forgets to mention that these were also the opening gigs of Jazzwise’s 20th anniversary festival. More significantly, though, this is a recording that could be one of the 75-year-old guitarist’s last UK date, as he comes to the end of a farewell US tour in December with his 4th Dimension band. With this in mind, and the fact that Ronnie’s was such a special venue during his formative years, were probably significant factors in the incisive and soulfully intimate performances heard by sell-out audiences on both nights, a selection of which has transferred well onto CD. Thankfully eschewing a boring muscle-flexing, ego-led fusion workout, McLaughlin and company instead set about freshening up the original jazz-rock ensemble/ composition-focused template. It’s all about the tunes and this is a well-balanced and pretty diverse selection of Mahavishnu Orchestra classics and tracks mostly from 4th Dimension’s most recent 2015 CD Black Light. They announce themselves with a Mahavishnu epic ‘Meeting Of The Spirits’, that kicks in abruptly with crashing chords and percussion before McLaughlin’s lightning Indo-psych fretwork hooks up with Gary Husband’s intensely edge-of-the-seat Fender Rhodes, more of which occurs on ‘El Hombre Que Sabia’, McLaughlin’s otherworldly flamenco-infused tribute to old sparring partner Paco De Lucia. Other big moments include the ominous Led Zep-like chime on ‘Sanctuary’ lifted from Birds of Fire, McLaughlin’s tastefully understated blues references on ‘New Blues Old Bruise’ and bassist Etienne M’Bappe ability to turn jawdropping virtuosity into something shapely and eloquent on ‘Here Comes the Jiis’.
Selwyn Harris (Jazzwise)
