JAZZ ROCK/FUSION

1. "The Golden Dawn" (3:39) an iconic song that has served as intros and signatory songs for countless shows, radio and televised, as well as often mistaken as something by artists like Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Mike Oldfield, Bob James, Larry Fast/ Synergy, Patrick Moraz, Kraftwerk, Passport, Jan Hammer, Vangelis, and many more. (8.875/10)

2. "Slinky" (5:42) here we get into the Smooth Jazz territory of Bob James, The (Jazz) Crusaders, and the Laws family (esp. Hubert and Ronnie) as well as Earl Klugh. An eminently enjoyable tune whose loud horn section takes one back to Chick's great The Mad Hatter album of a couple years before (my all-time favorite Third Wave Jazz-Rock Fusion album). The spacious structure and flute-with-Fender Rhodes melody presentation are so like the concurrent work of BOB JAMES, though. There's even a little MiniMoog homage at the end to the iconic RTF album, Romantic Warrior (also from 1976). (8.875/10)

3. "Mirage" (2:11) the orchestral arrangement of this pretty little filler is quite like the sound palette Chick and Claus Ogerman will put together to support Freddie Hubbard's upcoming 1979 release, The Love Connection. (4.375/5)

4. "Drifting" (4:09) a pretty little Yacht Rock motif that serves to support (and inspire) some of Chick's wife Gayle Moran's unique vocal stylings. Interesting to hear (and distinguish) the fretless bass of Bunny Brunnel in the mix. Nice little instrumental passage with horns and Joe Farrell's flute doubling up Chick's Fender Rhodes' melody lines. But, overall, there is nothing really remarkable about this song. (Maybe it's in the lyrics--which I don't hear.) (8.75/10)

5. "Glebe St. Blues" (6:58) a very STEELY DAN-sounding sound opens this before Gayle and Joe's tenor sax join in, alternating with one another in a blues/blues-rock fashion. At the end of the day, however, there is nothing so very special about this song (which is pretty much the same that I feel about most Steely Dan songs). (13.125/15)

6. "Fickle Funk" (5:05) an upbeat, uptempo song that feels as if the iconic drumming of Steve Gadd is paving the way, but it's not! It's Tom Brechtlein! He does a fine job while Chick, Bunny, and the horn section pull off another rather excellent J-RF rendering. Truly a J-R F song that has it all--plus more carry over from The Mad Hatter and one heckuva train of flugelhorn (Allen Vizzutti), trombone, and soprano sax solos in the second half while Bunny's going wild beneath them (though, in actuality, maybe they're trying to keep up with him). (9.25/10)

7. "Bagatelle #4" (3:34) one track solely devoted to Chick's somber Slavic classical piano chord play while his own "classic"/signature MiniMoog sound eventually solos over it. A "choir" of gospel blues choir singing soon joins in to accent and bridge the two. (8.875/10)

8. "Hot News Blues" (6:18) Chick's response to Bob James' "Celebrate Me Home" song on Kenny Loggins' album of that same name--here using up-and-coming vocal star Al Jarreau to sing the lead. (Al's 1978 album release, All Fly Home, his fourth release in three years, was about to rocket him into national spotlight--with regular singing appearances on Johnny Carson and three minor hits in "Thinking About It Too," "Fly," and "All.") Despite some great performances from Bunny Brunel and a great chemistry between Chick's Fender Rhodes and Al's jazzy scat voice, Al fails to take it to the heights I was expecting. In fact, one might argue that Chick's MiniMoog and the background gospel singers might have had greater success elevating this one to expected/hoped for heights. (8.875/10)

9. "Central Park" (5:22) a rollicking song to celebrate and commemorate the energy of New York's grand Central Park, obviously on a particularly lively and bustling summer's day. This is just a great whole-band celebratory jam with horns and percussionists working their magic on full speed and high vim and vigor. There's even a chorus of exuberant celebrants appearing in the fourth minute singing joyously while Chick, Bunny, Tom, Joe, and the horn section throw their own pep and merriment into the Latin weave. Album's don't often end on such a high note! (10/10)

Total Time 42:58

Though the album often feels like Chick conforming to pressures from the Polydor "head office," the quality of songwriting is still top top notch. (This is, after all, the one and only Chick Corea, folks!) Also, we'd almost gotten used to hearing albums from Chick that had consistent, start-to-finish themes or sounds whereas Secret Agent shows Chick's ability and talent for the creation of singular, stand-alone songs expressing quite a range.

A-/4.5 stars; though this might not be the greatest representative of peak era Jazz-Rock Fusion, it is a definite representative of superbly crafted and rendered Jazz-Rock Fusion songs: a variety pack, if you will. A new team of highly skilled creatives continues to uphold the incredibly high standard of music making that Chick Corea has now commanded for nearly a decade. Highly recommended!

1. "You're Everything" (5:11) Chick's gentle, melodic electric piano musings that are joined in the second half of the first minute by Flora Purim's very traditional Ella Fitzgerald-like jazz vocals. There is a strong hint of the previous decade's most popular influx into popular music: Brasilian bossa nova--a presence that becomes more pronounced and even dominant as the song develops (with the joinder of Stanley's double bass, Airto Moreira's brushed drums, and Joe Farrell's mellifluent flute. Light and bouncy and very Latin, this song feels/seems a response to pop demands as well as to the domineering influences of Chick's Italian heritage. (9/10)

2. "Light as a Feather" (10:57) opening with a quick fade-in on a Flora Purim vocal that was already in progress usually does not bode well for the presentation of finished compositions, but the length of this with its many smooth and melodic performances overcomes any obstacle presented by recording and editing processes. The performance of now-21 year old bass prodigy Stanley Clarke displays the young artist's continuing development of his own signature sounds and styles--though more in the solos than in the sometimes stiff and rote-sounding supporting chord arpeggios. The performances are all great--so smooth and professional--even presenting some creative and spirited solos from Joe Farrell on tenor sax, as well as Stanley and Chick. Flora's Latinized vocal, however, feels not only a continuation of/carryover from the previous song and is not really missed for the nine-tenths of the song in which it is absent. (18/20) 3. "Captain Marvel" (4:53) some uptempo Latin jazz with some awesome performances from Stanley and Chick, some rather weak and uninspired wordless vocals from Flora, and some poorly recorded and mixed kit drumming from Airto (too far in the background--as if being played in a pit while being recorded by microphones hanging from 20 feet above--while Airto and Flora's hand percussion tracks are recorded as if right in your lap. (8.875/10)

4. "500 Miles High" (9:07) another great opening from the duet of Flora Purim and Chick Corea that rather quickly turns into a Jazz-Rock motif. Flora's vocal here lets me know how influential her vocal stylings were to posterity cuz I definitely hear the mirrored style of the wonderful guest vocalists present in 21st Century electronic jazz duo KOOP's wonderful music. Once the music takes off, Stanley works furiously to try to fully-arpeggiate a progression of fast- changing chords while Chick splashes his own Fender Rhodes chords around over the top before Joe Farrell's aggressive sax steps in to take the lead. In the fifth minute, then, Stanley slows down, which turns out to be a signal that he's getting ready to support and play off of Chick's own solo. The two make such a good duo; I think I could listen to just duets between the two for an entire album. Anyway, the performance demands on Stanley are considerable despite the rudimentary techniques asked of him: they're just performed at such a high speed, yet his own solo in the seventh and eighth minutes is exquisite and classy while also impressive from a skills perspective. Taken into its whole with Flora's dulcet airy soprano melodies (of some rather prosaic lyrics) this is my favorite song on the album. I can't quite grasp whether or not I love this song for its Koop-familiarity or for its own sake. Probably a little of both. (19.25/20)

5. "Children's Song" (2:47) definitely a song that is simple enough to serve as a lullaby. It's minimalistic while still being demanding of the players due to its odd time and polyrhythms. I see it more as a Chopin-like étude. (4.5/5)

6. "Spain" (9:51) a cover of Miles Davis' classic tune shows some live, in-the-studio group spirit while displaying Chick's fascination with Latinized renditions of musical standards (here opening with the jazzified rendering of Rodrigo's famous "Adagio" (the Second Movement) from his "Concierto de Ajanjuez"). Hearing Flora and Airto's effervescent vocalizations from the percussion platform add a kind of 'live' feeling to the song. Both Airto and Chick seem quite engaged while supporting Joe Farrell's light flute play. Stanley is once again hyperfocussed on holding tight to the machine gun notes he's playing in trying to arpeggiate the five-chord descending progression--even as Chick takes the next solo on his "dirty"/distorted Fender Rhodes. At the end of the eighth minute everybody kind of clears out for Stanley to perform a solo. Unfortunately, I do have to admit to one significant negative reaction I have to the song: many of the individual and collective elements of this song were (obviously) lifted/borrowed for BARRY MANILOW's 1978 hit song, "Copacabana," with which I am much more familiar with (for nearly 50 years now as opposed to only getting to know Chick's and Miles' versions for a more recent time span). So, despite the great performances and structural and melodic elements, my brain is constantly singing Barry Manilow version! (17.5/20)

Total Time 42:46

A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of fairly early Jazz-Rock Fusion from a group of artists who were trying to merge together as a band but, many of whom, were still experimenting, exploring, and developing their stylistic preferences as well as their own personal interpretation of what this "fusion" thing was really about. Though it's now dated and overshadowed by the musics to come in 1973-76, this is still a collection of excellent songs and a very significant contribution to the odyssey that was the pioneering days of Jazz-Rock Fusion.

1. "Fuel for the Fire" (6:07) hearing this song for the first time lends itself to a theory that Larry and his collaborators had encountered the musical talents of both Urszula Dudziak (through the music of husband Michal Urbaniak's NYC- based band) and Leon Thomas (through Pharoah Sanders). I like and appreciate Linda's wordless work but she's really doing nothing very extraordinary much less innovative. Also, some really nice foundational play from the Fuel lineup feels a bit wasted on the video game synthesizer that Larry seems fixated upon (which later gets turned into some nice Fender Rhodes play). This just feels like a rather boring trip down the New Jersey Turnpike. (8.75/10) 2. "I Ching (Book of Changes)" (6:25) sounds a bit like music to a 1990s video game that was created by fusing melodies from Oriental and Classical music into cartoon-like urban funk themes. The music is at times frivolous and even laughable--like a Charlie Chan movie or an episode from Bill Cosby and The Cosby Kids--but at the same time offering some rather remarkable, high-quality fusion as well as some very high quality musicianship. (8.875/10)

3. "Turn off the Lights" (7:03) Linda Logan is back to lead us through a late night sex dungeon. Her sultry, ultra- suggestive vocal rides along a funk rhythm motif within which Larry explores keyboard sounds with an adventurousness that rivals George Clinton or Joe Zawinul (or Billy Preston). Focusing on the music there is a lot of fun sound and play coming from Larry's fingers--and Linda's vocal performance is strong and refined--quite worthy as an urban singer representing the Betty Davis School of Feminist Funk. (13.375/15)

4. "Floating" (4:12) another instrumental with a street-cruisin' funk motif that seems founded in both classical music traditions as well as the latest urban trends. I'm also once again reminded of the Black Exploitation soundtracks and early video game soundtracks as Larry's lead synthesizer sounds ready to settle into an Atari game of Pong or Space Computer. Not enough adventure and variety to warrant this as a representative of a highly creative, but that might be explained by its compositional credit going to Fuel's young guitarist, Santiago Torano. (8.6667/10)

5. "H + J = B (Hustle + Jam = Bread)" (6:17) more great urban funk from Fernando, Rob, and Santiago. This organ-based funk song sounds like a vehicle for Fuel's percussionists over which Larry continued to explore (rather mindlessly) the variety of synthetic sounds available to him on his array of synthesizers. (8.75/10)

6. "People Do Be Funny" (3:42) the third and final song with vocalist Linda Logan once again features Larry noodling around beneath Linda's urban funk vocal as if he's oblivious to the rest of the crew and the potential for more. (8.667/10)

7. "New York Electric Street Music" (8:33) more nice foundational funk music (with some nice work from drummer Santiago Torano) which feels underdeveloped and, therefore, rather wasted as its only reason for existence is to serve as a cushion and propellant Larry's rather silly vocal and keyboard work. There is some rather cool incendiary lead guitar work peppered here and there within the music (the seventh minute, in particular). (17.5/20)

Total Time 41:39

It is unfortunate that so much great funk music feels rather wasted by Larry's rather singular and selfish preoccupation with the monofocus of playing George Clinton-like synth lines over and between the rhythm section and the vocals. This results in a collection of songs that feel tremendously under-developed; this could have been so much more!

C+/three stars; a collection of well-founded funk that sadly seems grossly one-dimensional and quite underdeveloped.

Throughout the years when Radim Hladik was de facto joined by Walk-Choc-Ice band members, there was a real musical chemistry that was slowly building up - almost to perfection. IMO, some of the live versions sounded even better than the original tracks - I only had some issues with Honza Krizek's vocals. My absolute favourites from this release are Zmoudření babím létem, Rajky and the phenomenal Ej, padá, padá rosenka, sung by Vesely and Semelka.

I remember being a regular visitor at Blue Effect's acoustic/electric concerts all over the Czech Republic, but especially in Prague, namely at Vagon, Lucerna, Balbinka or Chodovska tvrz. It was amazing standing right in front of Radim Hladik, watching him play, putting his guitar behind his head - even at his advanced age and despite his health issues.

The last concert I saw Blue Effect/Radim Hladik performing was in 2016 in Loket (a beautiful scene in a river meandre with a majestic castle on a rock above the stage) as a forerunner of Jethro Tull (!!!) Radim was very ill already, wearing his breathing apparatus, but apparetly, music was keeping him alive. Anyway, what a great concert that was, one of the best I've ever been to... and a bit later on, waiting at Balbinka, Prague, we were announced that the concert we were waiting for would be cancelled due to Hladik's health (he was taken to hospital that day and never left it...)

It's been years since Radim Hladik passed away but he lives on through his phenomenal musicianship and extraordinary talent.

1. "Golden Lakes" (4:45) both gents show a marvelous ability to express in gorgeous melodies--in tandem and separately--and then to return to them occasionally thus keeping the listener tethered to the song. And this is from piano and electrified acoustic guitar! (The main melody does, however, sound familiar.) (9/10)

2. "Stop Fiddlin'" (2:53) a song of bluesy piano-sounding electric piano. (8.5/10)

3. "The Things You See" (4:29) beautiful Fender Rhodes and electric guitar interplay that remind me of BOZ SCAGGS' "Harbor Lights." 50-seconds in we are spliced into a completely different track on which Gordon is playing acoustic piano in a kind of Chick Corea/George Gershwin style while Allan scurries around on an acoustic-sounding electric guitar. At 2:45 the music then splices back to the opening instrumental sound palette with someone playing a "fretless"-sounding bass line (methinks it Gordon's Fender Rhodes). I love these acoustic duets the most--wish they would stay away from the electric stuff (and stay away from the bluesy, N'orleans sounds and stylings). (9.33333/10)

4. "Diminished Responsability" (8:14) fast Chick Corea-Al Di Meola-like acoustic piano and acoustic guitar playing off one another à la the song "Romantic Warrior" if sped up and/or juxtaposed with something more classical in origin-- not unlike something that John McLaughlin would do were he paired up with pianist wife Katia Labèque while on his steel-stringed acoustic guitar. Allan's guitar sounds so Stanley Jordan like in his solo voce section whereas Gordon's piano sound and styling sounds like a very serious, classically-oriented Chick Corea. (13.375/15)

5. "She's Lookin', I'm Cookin'" (11:54) despite the continous "wandering" feel of this one--where the piano and acoustic guitar continuously feel as if they are feeling each other out, trying to figure out whether to dance or run--the beauty of this "get to know me" conversation is reminiscent of some of John McLaughlin's most tender "conversations" with other musicians (and himself). At the end of the fifth minute Gordon switches to electric piano kind of freeing Allan to explore his own inner ruminations and inspirations. Gordon gets to do some of the same with his right hand on the piano in the second half of the song--over the course of both of the main motifs employed by the songwriters. I just don't like it when Allan goes to warp speed or when Gordon moves into his blues-based chord and phrasings. Otherwise, this is a great, beautiful, enjoyable song. (23/25)

6. "At The Edge" (3:15) I specifically looked this one up because I saw that Allan sings on it. (I LOVED his voice and vocal stylings on the 1969 'Igginbottom album.) This one-man song reminds me of both 'Igginbottom's lone album and the softer parts of "Nevermore" and "Mental Medication" from the debut UK album. (9.25/10)

7. "Up Country" (4:15) almost some stride New Orleans-style piano. Allan plays more reactively than in a planned, composed fashion--though two separate tracks mirroring each other illustrates some rehearsal and planning pretty well. (8.75/10)

Total time 39:45

I have to admit that Allan Holdsworth's unique and sometimes abrasive melody choices become much more tolerable and even enjoyable and, believe it or not, soothing when delivered from an acoustic guitar. The electric guitar sound that he discovered in 1977 that became his "iconic" signature sound (until he discovered the SynthAxe and other guitar synthesizers) is well and good but sometimes setting him so far apart from the other instruments (and musicians) in a song that you really do feel as if the man is just a visitor from another planet or another dimension. The acoustic guitar humanizes him.

A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of more traditional acoustic blues and jazz duet play between two amazing virtuosos.

A1. "Sweet Revenge" (6:04) definitely a hard-rock-oriented tune with a five chord repeating power motif within which Tony and keyboardist Alan Pasqua fly around while Allan and bassist Tony Newton hold down the fort until the 1:35 mark when the musicians shift into a spacious funk groove that is led by Tony Newton's bass line and Tony Williams' steady straight-time drumming while Alan and Allan add little of their spice to the mix. By the three-minute mark Allan is back to providing the five power chords while Tony Newton remains fixed to the funk bass lines as band leader Tony and the keyboardist begin to add their spicey flourishes and riffs. Guitar gets some solo licks in during the sixth minute but really nothing more: it never becomes a song for solo set ups; the musicians are each responsible for working their own creative ideas over and above the mainline they are each charged with. Very interesting! Once again "Jazz Drummer" Tony Williams surprises me with his firm rock orientation and commitment. (9/10)

A2. "You Did It To Me" (3:50) is this where DEVO got the ideas for their hit "Whip it"? Tony Newton's vocals (multiplied with some tracks effected with heavier reverb) is rockin' funky R&B in a kind of Jazz-Rock AVERAGE WHITE BAND form and sound. (The uncredited horn section leads me to surmise that all of those extraordinary horn lines can be attributed to keyboard genius Alan Pasqua and his familiarity with the very latest of keyboard technologies--perhaps the Yamaha CS-80 or ARP Omni or even Mellotron.) Though Jack Nitzsche is listed as contributor of arrangements, not artist/musician/or group is ever credited, which makes the employment of a horn section suspect. Rated up for the extraordinary work of Alan Pasqua. (8.875/10)

A3. "Million Dollar Legs" (6:36) using JIMMY CATOR BUNCH's bass line from "Troglodyte," Billy Preston's "Outa Space"- style clavinet, plus some gorgeous ARP strings, more keyboard-generated horns, Disco drumming, and horn-like lead guitar work from Allan gives you this interesting . By this time, the third song in line, I am coming to feel that band- leader Tony Williams had a very diverse and comprehensive plan for this album, for these musicians--a plan for which his enlisted musicians would have to be fully-attentive to. (9.125/10)

A4. "Joy Filled Summer" (5:51) the melodic offerings of this song almost make it guilty of sliding into the realm of Smooth Jazz (especially with Tony's anchoring it all in his souped-up Disco drumming) but there is just too much nuance and complexity going on here to ever call this "Smooth"--and too much rock infusion to call it "Jazz"--and yet, Jazz-Rock Fusion it is in all it's perfect if decadent glory. (SO sad to see/hear J-RF go this route.) At the end of the fourth minute the band deigns it possible (and perhaps permissible) to clear out for some Holdsworth pyrotechnics but it's short-lived as the other three exceptional musicians all are suddenly flooding the pool with their own extraordinary offerings: all at the same time! Amazing! I mean, musically this isn't that enjoyable, but instrumentally it's quite a show! (9/10) B1. "Lady Jade" (3:59) gentle Fender Rhodes and, later, ARP Strings and Moog synth from Alan P. that sound as if they could be coming from or BRIAN JACKSON or JOE SAMPLE (or Richard Clayderman!): it's like an overture or intro to something much bigger, much more grandiose. With this song I've finally begun to understand how and why Allan Holdsworth treasured his two year stint with Tony Williams as the most formative and transformational of his lifetime: the music here is so creative, the ideas so fresh and boundary-pushing (and eclectic). While the end results, as polished and incredibly-well-executed as they are, may not be to everybody's liking, they are, each and every one, displays of extraordinarily complex, extraordinarily difficult pieces to play. What an adventure! What an apprenticeship for any musician! As a matter of fact, I would go so far to say that any musician who is hired, mentored, and then launched out into the world after being part of a Tony Williams project has been given the finest "finishing school"--or, better yet: "graduate school"--experience available on the planet. (9.25/10)

B2. "What You Do To Me" (7:06) beautiful and melodic "smooth" Alan Pasqua-decorated funk with deceptively hard to play music in which each of the band members has to keep devoutly disciplined as well as ego-lessly focused in order to add their own idiosyncratically-generated "more" on top. The execution of this song reminds me of the stories that Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis tell of Prince's demands of them during band practice/rehearsals for THE TIME: always adding more to what he wanted from his musicians: dexterity, syncopation, polyphony, harmony with and over the melodies, but then movement (dance moves), looks and facial expressions and other theatricals, vocals, costuming, attitude, etc. The point is: by asking/expecting more from his musicians (multi-tasking), Prince was able to help his musicians grow: to help them realize that they are capable of so much more than they themselves ever thought themselves possible. I imagine that this is exactly how Tony Williams made his collaborators feel: as if they were helped to re-imagine themselves as much better, much bigger, much more capable musicians (and humans) than they had ever imagined of themselves. (13.875/15)

B3. "Inspirations Of Love" (9:48) Opening with a rather bombastic full band "orchestrated" motif that feels like an opening overture or intro to a Broadway musical, but then after 90 seconds everybody just kind of quits: going on a walkabout as Tony Newton and Alan Pasqua wander off into a stunned space-filling spacey space filler with spacious bass notes and swirling Rainer Brüninghaus-like waves of piano runs that feels like part Pharoah Sanders, part space interlude. At 3:45 the full band/orchestra chords signal the entry into a new motif (reminding me of The Soft Machine's "Hazard Profile") which then turns into a funk-rock Mahavishnu--like vehicle for some stellar new-era Allan Holdsworth soloing until Tony asks for a clear-out in the sixth minute to make room for a beautiful and impressive (for being so incredibly smooth) extended drum solo, the echoing cavernous tom-tom play extending well into the eighth and ninth minutes even as Alan Pasqua's Chick-Corea-like waves of piano runs begin to rejoin and fill part of the field. At 8:20 Tony Newton's big bombastic bass re-enters and leads the band into an "orchestrated" outro that feels like a bookend match to the song's rockin' Broadway musical opening. An unusual song that feels like a response to some of the more symphonic and proggy pieces of recent Lenny White, Chick Corea, and Return To Forever albums (Venusian Summer, Leprechaun, and Romantic Warrior, respectively). I found this particular song so surprising, so wildly unexpected yet so uncommonly creative and mystifyingly enjoyable (for the cinematic and melodramatic journey it takes one one) that I found myself listening to it over and over for several hours before I finally felt that I could finally get a grasp on it. One of the best musical listening experiences I've had in a long time. (20/20)

Total time: 43:14

The technical and keyboard wizardry of Alan Pasqua really comes shining through for me throughout this album. Tony's drumming are dependably flawless and Allan Holdsworth guitar playing feels very restrained and constrained while Tony Newton's contributions feel spot on top-notch quality for whatever Tony Williams is asking of him (which is considerable--but which the 15+ years Motown/James-Jamerson-trained bass player is well prepped and suited), but, in my opinion, it's really the keyboardist's album to show off on despite the exceedingly high demands Tony has placed on his band mates. As for my assessment on Tony's performances and accomplishment: I am awed at his ability to play at multiple levels of technical prowess: playing flawlessly on the timing front while spicing things up with his endlessly-creative flourishes and embellishments that wow and impress without taking anything away from the rest of the song or his collaborators. To listen to six songs over 43 minutes in which not a second is wasted, not a second is "coasting" or moving along rotely, without having to work, not a second goes buy without the listener being able to find a "resting" place for any of the musicians, this is such a rare feat in the world of music that I have endless respect and admiration for this album.

A/five stars; a purely unique masterpiece of incredibly well-rendered and well-played performances of intensely- creative and highly-sophisticated musical ideas unlike any other album from Jazz-Rock Fusion's "peak era" that I've heard. For those listeners and critics of this album who fail to see its redeeming qualities--the way it stands up to either the standards set or the expectations provided by Tony's previous albums (or Allan Holdsworth's future potential), I will stand up mano à mano to them and task them with one single proposition that should serve to settle any dispute as to whether or not this album is great: I want you to show me that you can play one minute of any part of any of these musicians' parts in any one of the songs on this album. If you can do that without flaws or overdubs, then and only then will I let you get away with trashing this album as a "sub-par" sellout illustrating the crumble and demise of the Jazz-Rock Fusion movement. Instead, I choose to hold this album up as one of the most remarkable peaks and apogees of the entire Jazz-Rock Fusion scene.

Jussi Pekka Pohjola was a Finnish multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer that was born in Helsinki. Despite he is best known as a bass player, Pohjola was also a classically trained pianist and violinist. Pohjola belonged to one of the most prominent musical families in Finland. Pohjola is, without any doubt, one of the greatest electric bass players in Europe. He studied classical piano and violin at the Sibelius Academy, in Helsinki, all the while allowing his natural instincts to lead him to a career in rock'n'roll. He rose to fame as the bass player of the Finnish progressive rock band Wigwam, but he soon departed on a solo career, initially releasing Frank Zappa influenced progressive rock albums. As his career progressed Pohjola developed a more novel musical style that could best be described as fusion jazz style.

After leaving Wigwam, Pekka did a lot of studio work and played in some other bands. In 1977 Pekka formed The Group, recording their eponymous debut album in the same year. But most important, Pekka recorded his first solo studio album "Pihkasilma Kaarnakorva" in 1972 during his Wigwam days, his second "Harakka Bialoipokku", internationally known as "B The Magpie" in 1974 and the third one, "Keesojen Lehto", internationally known as "The Mathematician's Air Display2" in 1977. Pekkas fourth solo album, "Visitation", which was released in 1979, was a big critical success.

So, "Visitation" is the fourth studio album of Pekka Pohjola and was released in 1979. Besides Pekka Pohjola (grand piano and bass), "Visitation" had also the participation of Seppo Tyni (guitar), Olli Ahvenlahti (electric and grand piano and bass), Pekka Poyry (saxophone and soprano saxophone solo), Juhani Aaltonen, Eero Koivistoinen and Teemu Salminen (saxophones), Tom Bildo (tuba and trombone), Markku Johansson (trumpets), Aale Lindgren (oboe), Vesa Aaltonen (drums and percussion), Esko Rosnell (percussion) and even also the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra (woodwinds and strings), all as guest artists.

The music of his most successful album, "Visitation", was a major step forward for Pohjola, the first major pinnacle that all the early albums led up to. It has come to represent the standard of Finnish music to a foreign audience with its portentous sound and fantasy themes. However, it equally strikes for its variety of moods and styles. Still operating essentially in the melodic jazz rock mode, yet driven by many other new influences, he pulled together the best of his compositional skills surpassing anything he had done up to this point. There are stronger classical elements, more use of dissonance, dynamic shifts and general stylistic adventurism. "Visitation" is the best place to start getting familiar.

"Strange Awakening" opens with an elegant piano playing and a restrained clanging of cymbals building an enigmatic atmosphere. Starting from a motivated piano tune, Pohjola erects a truly breathtaking fusion structure, where there's a place for both his melodious bass passages and a massive polyphonic bombardment. The atmosphere changes in the second song "Vapour Trails". It's a lively and fast tempo jazz-rock song that brings Tyn's electric guitar, who paints the playing space with speedy and extremely precise solos, and maestro Peyri, who polishes the rhythmic foundation with no less sophisticated passages. On "Image Of A Passing Smile" the instrumentation expands even further in the song as the woodwinds and cellos of the orchestra are brought in. The first half of the song, which contains very beautiful melodies, is mostly acoustic, except for Pohjola's bass guitar, while the second half is more energetic. "Dancing In The Dark" is a hit progressive fusion with some funk elements. It's perhaps the most playful part of the album, where Tyn's electric guitar gets plenty of space and Pohjola's bass lines are delicious to hear. The trumpet solo by Johansson adds to the scope of the album's soloist spectrum. With only three minutes long, "The Sighting" starts lightly, but quickly grows into a more dynamic performance, which once again features the album's entire saxophone quartet. There's a new instrument, Lindgren's beautifully played oboe. The album ends with a great orchestral piece, "Try To Remember". It begins humbly like a hymn and slowly grows bigger. The orchestra plays in addition to the woodwinds. The entire string section is included in the orchestra. The woodwinds sound beautifully, especially in the beginning of the song.

Conclusion: "Visitation" is only 32 minutes long but it's an amazing album that is almost perfect that doesn't contain idle time. The musicality on it is simply superb. Here we have music that could be described as symphonic jazz rock and its bold and majestic sound is quite unique. Pekka was an amazing musician as a composer and performer. He was able to build something that is really very difficult to do in music, which is to join the complexity to the beauty of the melody. Besides, he was an amazing bassist and multi-instrumentalist. I love the interplay between the bass and the guitar. The album also has an amazing rhythm section. Besides that, the orchestration and the use of the brass section, strings and woodwinds are simply amazing. All of this made "Visitation" a terrific ambitious album, almost unique.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

From the humongous opening barrage justly named "The Fifth Damnation", the Zanella sax duels with Fafard's blistering axe work, a highly lubricated, no holds barred rampage that seeks to percolate the senses into a heady brew. Somewhat more reflective is his bass work on the ever escalating "Mount Improbable" which dares to add some spectacular Spanish guitar to the ascending climb into the rarified air. Combine this with an equally Latin flavoured saxophone blast and you get the message, let us not omit to mention Husband percussing like a madman.

The bass guitar stream on "Flow" is extremely technical, a dexterous ramble that defies proper description, certainly closer to a torrent than a pastoral brook, the drum work highly stimulating as the impossible lead guitar does some Holdsworthian spirals that are otherworldly. More brassy reflections add to the stimulus. Contrast that with the sedate "Quadrivium" , a jazzier mood piece that features a geometric bass solo that stamps the crimson wax on the qualifications for bass greatness. Hints of Percy Jones and the great Jaco, but Fafard is definitely in a league of his own. Zanella provides the impetus to accelerate briefly into turbo charged fury, before gearing down into cruise control.

The intricate tingling onset of "Moebius Loop" intoxicates with surrealistic textures, deeply burgeoning variations, steeped in experimental jazz exploration. A mid-section platform guitar platform winks at vintage Summers-Fripp realms, where criss-crossing riffs are sliced open by sheer saxophone frenzy. Once again needing to be reiterated, Gary Husband displays both flawless stick technique and maverick inspiration on his kit. Divergence is now a necessity and the acoustic shuffle on "Paraorbital Vision" works like a charm, deflecting towards energetic encounters with trembling notes, Fafard's guitar doing scorching damage, while Zanella seeks to soothe the burn.

The general style is heavy jazz-rock fusion, so any Mahavishnu Orchestra influence should be par for the course, as "Flying Ocean" and "Transmuted Reality" showcase both sonic extremes made legendary by that combo. The elaborate acoustic guitar sections will definitely remind one of the classic jazz-rock pioneers (John and Al), the brass parts adding the needed "voice".

Right away or "Tout de Suite" in French, is the longest track here , clocking in over 8 minutes+ and as befits an epic composition, the pace is first set into motion and will evolve according to the trio's inspiration. What is remarkable about this production is that all three musicians have overtly equal playing time, no one hogging the spotlight, so that indulgence is never an issue. Locked in, inspired and focused. Yes, it is definitely challenging and demanding, though never coming across as a showing-off display of chopzilla. Having witnessed live a world class bassist who drew booing and insults for his pedantic performance, full of ego and utter fluff, I surely recognize egotistical tendencies. There are absolutely none here. In fact, Fafard's talent on guitars is surely worth the price of admission, as I have rarely encountered such a phenomenon, going from 4 to 6 strings with such audacious brilliance.

A contemplative finale, "De Natura Deorum" perfectly encompasses the previous set-list as it explores all the attributes that this trio possesses in spades (as well, as diamonds, clubs and hearts). When the urge to be sonically stimulated by an awe-inspiring crew comes along, this release will come as a blessing without any camouflage or window dressing. Just plain old fashioned blow out of the highest order.

4,.5 square globes

Moving on to the current album, every song offers up something great, but my personal favorite is the opening track Dny, Měsíce A Roky. This one could have very well been released as a single, because, despite its high quality in terms of eclectic material and structures written here, it has some neat hooks and sort of catchy melodies while still being able to please the listeners that like music that's more "out there", to say the least. I also enjoy how Moře Klidu takes a completely different approach and springs from low, ominous music to quirky and rushing improvisation, similar to what happened on Squarer for Maud by National Health. Apart from a brief interlude called Sen O Zemi, each of the songs on side one follow its own path while staying true to the band's unique sound. If I had to complain about something though, it would probably be the lack of length these numbers have. Side two also has its strengths, with its first song, Pisečn? Přesypy is a highlight. You can just feel the excitement and energy these guys had when they were writing and playing this type of music. It's, again, highly entertaining and complex, while not sounding pretentious or overly dramatic in its nature. I also like Půlnočni's more chillingly quiet and darkly echoeing material while also having dynamics between this and more intensely energized things. Something interesting about side two, however, is the more significant use of female chorus vocals and background singing, which was only present on one song on side one, but on side two they seem to be a main rhythm instrument (and sometimes lead) for most songs. This is a cool twist, especially how they don't sing any lyrics and just how it's just noises.

In conclusion, this is a strong album and a hidden gem within the genre. It has a sense of technicality and creativity that few artists were making at the time, combining wacky and wild songwriting with electrified musicianship. I would highly recommend this album to people interested in the jazz fusion field of progressive rock, because it will not disappoint you. This is a strong 4/5 for me.

A1. "Scarabée" (6:15) kalimba, cymbals and other percussion play, long notes from a gentle saxophone, guitar chords, all building very slowly--like the discoveries in a detective spy novel. Impeccable sound rendering of music that seems to go for an effect, a setting, more than a structured song. Not the kind of musical listening experience (or even participatory experience) that I enjoy--unless in an Orff music class with the preschoolers and kindergarteners. (8.25/10)

A2. "Mah-Jong" (1:50) bass, cymbals, bass drum, snare drum, chromatic and dissonant guitar notes, chords and sounds, percussive play of other stringed instruments (like autoharp?). Intro to a Beatnik sit in. (4/5)

A3. "Beast Of Kommodo" (12:30) the first song that has some structural elements that I can hook into: Arild's adherence to a steady four-chord line of bass chords, Jon Christensen's cymbal and big tom interplay, Terje Rypdal's gentle finger-plucked guitar chords (complementing Arild's bass chords until the seventh minute when the two separate), and Jan's mellifluous and innocuous sax play. Once Terje's chord play deviates from Arild's, Arild and Jon really go off into their own lands (with Jan picking up some percussion along the way). It is truly remarkable how melodic Jon Christensen's drum play is: such a master and virtuoso! The rhythm section reins themselves back in (now playing a different pattern) while Jan picks up different instruments like flute and bent sax notes and Terje begins to express more in single notes and blues-rock chords à la John Tropea and Eric Gale. Overall I find myself really liking this: more for the skills on display and non-discordant melodies the individuals choose to employ. The odd 30-second bass and flute finale is weirdly sliced onto the end for reasons I know not. (22.5/25)

B1. "Blow Away Zone" (8:35) more odd percussion work as Jon Christensen "splits himself" into half cymbalist, half tom-tom player. Terje's unconventional scraping of his guitar strings and odd striking/strumming of the non-fretted parts of his guitar strings takes the lead for a bit before Jan enters playing a crochety old bass sax with minimal care for the initial sounds he's creating. Eventually he reins it in and starts playing clearer notes and runs while Arlid's bass walks aimlessly around the fretboard, but Jan continues to mix in the scratchy, screechy atonal notes while Jon continues exploring his own Venn overlap of cymbals and toms and Terje continues playing parts of his guitar that aren't meant to play pleasant ear-charming music. Around the 6:00 minute mark every one stops to watch (I don't imagine they're drawn to listen) as Jan's screeching goes completely off the charts: sounding more like scared/dying seals, walruses, mandrills, and baboons than saxophones. Then everybody rejoins to contribute their own alien animal language inputs to bring the "song" to a close. The skill level and command of their instruments are extraordinary; the music not so much. (17/20)

B2. "MYB" (1:50) Beatnik bass, soft malleted toms and brushed snare, bent note guitar, and toneless, melody-less sax. Okay: where's the poet. (4/5)

B3. "Concentus" (0:47) like a top notch orchestra pit tuning and coming into entrainment. (4.5/5)

B4. "Afric Pepperbird" (8:00) I can definitely hear structure in this song: a set drum pattern, a melodic repeating bass line, rhythmic and melodic guitar and sax play. Overall, quite an enjoyable and image-evoking music experience. (13.5/15)

B5. "Blupp" (1:05) toms, sticks, and bird-like human-made vocal blips, all syncopated as if played by a trio of curious chimpanzees. (4.25/5)

Total Time: 41:27

As praised and acclaimed as this album is I cannot for the life of me pinpoint why--unless it is The Esoteric Circle's disdain for known forms, sounds, and structures while virtually eschewing the avant garde "free jazz" or "third stream" (perhaps expressing a little nostalgic holdover from the lost era of the Beat Generation).

C/three stars; I'm sure the musical knowledge and skill necessary to play this stuff is off the charts, but this is no music for me--and it is definitely nowhere near anything that fuses "rock 'n' roll" with "jazz" music!