DIFFERENCE

Yet another outstanding Coryell album, and one of the most unashamed jazz-rock guitar albums, yet all to short IMHO in its duration. The usual guests are around, Tony Williams, Steve Khan, the Brecker brothers, etc. Although the album was recorded in 75, it didn't see the light of day until 78; indeed it is an assemblage of Electric Lady studio (the Hendrix facilities) recordings and the Montreux festival of the same year. The only things that would make this album a bit different is the label that issued it (Egg) and the unrelated sea photo artwork, as the rest makes it a typical Coryell album.

The opening Octaves is an excellent instrumental (the whole album is) where Brecker and Sanborn make remarkable sax interventions. Memphis Underground could easily sound as if it escaped an Eleventh House album, but the line-up is nowhere near the group's. Picean Moon is a rather chilling piece of jazz, sometimes nearing the dissonant.

As usual, there are acoustic guitar tracks, with the aptly titled Acoustic Solo (maybe a little lengthy, but we won't complain given the overall album duration), the short but nervous Improvisation (that's its name) and the duo flamenco-influenced Serabound, where Khan gets in act, but the track is unfocused. The closing Aquarian Mode is a rather cold and limit-dissonant piece where LC's guitar is a bit overpowering.

Again I wouldn't call Difference anywhere close to essential, but it has its merits if you are a Coryell fan. But in the frame of this site, this album is expandable despite its share of interesting moments.