Visions of the Emerald Beyond

an absolutely  fantastic album-the first Mahavishnu Orchestra album that really worked for me, and still does-has a great musical presence and is a thrill to listen to-better than Apocalypse

Narada Michael Walden is back to drumming in concert.  Currently on tour as drummer for Jeff Beck.

You've inspired me to make it my first album of the morning!

I still find it odd that there's a group of people who really liked the first Maha band lineup but dismiss anything that came after that.  Apocalypse remains my favorite MO album but good stuff on this one, too.  I think my favorite track is Faith.  Short but with a delicious intensity.

I picked up a box set of 5 MO CDs yesterday for £17, just working my way through them now. Maybe I'll just jump straight to this one.

Quite different from the frantic rocking energy of Birds of Fire and Trident sessions, but a fantastic album!

John McLaughlin plays some really wild guitar solos on this one. It has that whole spiritual aspect to it. At the time of it's release musicians all around me were critical about the album and practically slaughtered it but, I strongly believe it had more to do with the changing of members. Sort of the same way groups of Yes fans left off with Close to the Edge and despised Topographic. I thought Emerald Beyond was a great album. I love the way McLaughlin lets loose on there...it's incredible. The pieces are just beautiful and dimensional. When I listen to it today, I appreaciate it's value and uniqueness. Just writing material like this and putting out a record of it is a hell of a realization. It's sort of in the Progressive rock vain too...although instrumental and not always a hundred percent fusion. It really is a great album.

O666 wrote: The great masterpiece. One of the best  MO albums. I die for " Eternity's Breath " . You can find " Indian taste " combined with JRF in this song. Fantastic drumming with light speed guitar playing plus perfect choral voice.

Beautiful review!

The only thing McLaughlin did wrong with the MO was that atrocious Inner Worlds. Rumour has it that he was so pissed off with electric music after that stinker that he smashed one of his valuable double necks to bits. I think that after Emerald he had taken the MO concept to it's outer limits. Shakti was a relief. Those two albums he made in the 80s under the moniker Mahavishnu have nothing to do withe the original 70s incarnations although I do enjoy some of the music that appeared on those two albums but he overdid it with the synth axes. Saw him on tour for the first one and it was rather disappointing. He wouldn't put that bloody synth axe down. I think he played a Les Paul special on two pieces. After the show their were mixed reactions. Oh no! I'm actually talking about music and not Israelis attacking Flottilas or  Vatican controversies. I'd better get back the the general discussions.