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Mahavishnu Orchestra
The Inner Mounting Flame (1971)

1. Meeting Of The Spirits (6:52)
2. Dawn (5:10)
3. Noonward Race (6:28)
4. A Lotus On Irish Streams (5:39)
5. Vital Transformation (6:16)
6. The Dance Of Maya (7:17)
7. You Know, You Know (5:07)
8. Awakening (3:32)

One of the classics of jazz-fusion, and for good reason. Everyone in the band is a virtuoso, with guitarist John McLaughlin perhaps the most noteworthy. While the compositional complexity is impressive, this doesn't come across as mindless noodling; the songwriting chops are as strong as anything else. One of the standout tracks (although all stand out to some extent) is "Meeting of the Spirits', where McLaughlin's guitar wails like a siren over the groove laid down on violin by Jerry Goodman, while drummer Billy Cobham sets the drumkit on fire. Goodman's violin is probably what most uniquely distinguishes this as a fantastic release; in the faster workouts he can keep up without difficulty, and in the slower numbers often serves up the most poignant and heart-wrenching lines.

Musically, I am somewhat reminded of mid-period King Crimson at times; The first half of "Dawn" sounds like something the latter band might have done around Larks' Tongues In Aspic. What is interesting is that these guys easily preceded Crimson, which makes me wonder to what extent they were an influence on that band.

A note on sound quality; the Columbia remaster of this album is great! I only hope that other Columbia jazz/fusion releases will get this treatment, because it enhances my enjoyment that much more. I can only apologize to true fusion fans, because as much as I like this release I don't think I can appreciate it as much as I should. Anyone who still doesn't know this band and who likes mid-period Crimson must check this album out.

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