Johnny McLaughlin, Electric Guitarist
	Produced by John McLaughlin in association with Dennis MacKay
	Released on 1978
	no chart information
	Find it at GEMM
JC 35326 cover [high resolution photo]

N ot a McLaughlin matter worth overanalyzing, simply a septet of songs in various permutations. The idea here seems to be to show off the guitarist’s range, from Mahavishnu to Santavishnu to contentious energy-lord of the avant garde. Interesting but rarely arresting, Johnny McLaughlin, Electric Guitarist doesn’t belong at the top of John’s resume. I’ll concede that “Friendship” delivers where Love Devotion Surrender didn’t, finding middle ground between the styles of McLaughlin and Santana, and the dreamy “Every Tear From Every Eye” conjures butterflies. But the rest of the record is a little too loose and jammy, from the drum-guitar boxing match of “Phenomenon: Compulsion” to the aimless funk of “Are You The One? Are You The One?” While it covers a lot of ground, spectacular scenery is scarce. A Mahavishnu reunion of sorts (“New York On My Mind”) arrives at the same attainable height as Jean-Luc Ponty’s early also-rans, a session with Chick Corea and Stanley Clarke is standoffishly notey. McLaughlin’s tripping bursts of guitar notes are technically impressive, though he only generates warmth by turning off the fireworks display for “My Foolish Heart.” The track placement seems to suggest a predestined course, stripping away layers until the irreducible is left. If it’s not the guitar workshop some hoped for, drummers won’t be disappointed: Billy Cobham, Jack DeJohnette and Tony Williams are their usual awe-inspiring selves. Fine cameos from Patrice Rushen, Jerry Goodman and Jack Bruce further underscore the who’s who lineup on this all-star assembly. But great musicians don’t automatically equate to great music, at least not here. Perhaps he should have retitled this Johnny McLaughlin, Eclectic Guitarist.

JC 35326 inner gatefold	JC 35326 back cover

TRACK LISTING

1. NEW YORK ON MY MIND    5:46
2. FRIENDSHIP    7:01
3. EVERY TEAR FROM EVERY EYE    6:51
4. DO YOU HEAR THE VOICES THAT YOU LEFT BEHIND?    7:40
5. ARE YOU THE ONE? ARE YOU THE ONE?    4:41
6. PHENOMENON: COMPULSION    3:21
7. MY FOOLISH HEART    (Victor Young/N. Washington, arr. by John McLaughlin)    3:26
   
   All compositions by John McLaughlin unless noted

CREDITS

JOHN McLAUGHLIN -- guitar
Jack Bruce -- bass (5)
Stanley Clarke -- acoustic bass (4)
Billy Cobham -- drums (1,6)
Chick Corea -- piano, mini-moog (4)
Tom Coster -- organ (2)
Jack DeJohnette -- drums (4)
Stu Goldberg -- electric piano, organ and mini-moog synthesizer (1)
Jerry Goodman -- violin (1)
Neil Jason -- bass (2)
Alphonso Johnson -- Taurus bass pedals and bass (3)
Alyrio Lima -- percussion (2)
Armando Peraza -- congas (2)
Patrice Rushen -- piano (3)
David Sanborn -- alto sax (3)
Devadip Carlos Santana -- guitar (2)
Fernando Saunders -- bass (1)
Tony Smith -- drums (3)
Narada Michael Walden -- drums (2)
Tony Williams -- drums (5)
Dennis MacKay -- engineer
David Gahr, Sam Emerson, Chris Poisson -- inside photos
Tono Hixon -- back cover photo
Gene Greif -- design

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