The Truth Comes Out
It is amazing that John McLaughlin has not become more renowned than he already is. He’s the most thoroughly progressive genius of that instrument ever. And at this point in rock history, when dynamite guitar players sell on the open market for much less than a dime a dozen, a person who has taken the instrument so far beyond traditional limitation would seem to be a godsend.
Admittedly, McLaughlin has been around for some time now; longer than the average super-hype musician, as long as people likeClapton and the Stones. And he’s played with some of the most progressive English bands in existence. For several years he played in England and on the continent with the Graham Bond Organisation, the guitar player in a band that featured Bond on organ, Jack Bruce on bass and Ginger Baker on drums.
Amerikans first became aware of McLaughlin through the combined auspices of Tony Williams and Miles Davis. Featured as a guitarist on the first Williams’ Lifetime LP (Emergency!), which although not entirely successful did at least serve to impress with its ideas, and on Miles Davis’ quietly beautiful In A Silent Way (his playing on the title cut an awesome challenge to the tens of thousands of note run guitarists presently plaguing the planet), dedicated jazz buffs have been talking about him for over a year.