SHAKTI WITH JOHN MCLAUGHLIN

Although I have to respect John McLaughlin for moving into startlingly different musical territory with this album, on balance I have to say it just doesn't do that much for me. John's playing is just as fast on the acoustic guitar as it is on the electric, and his Indian collaborators do a good job of keeping up, but I find the whole experience rather discomforting. As well as the prominence given to John in the mix and on the cover leaving a bad taste in my mouth - it comes across to me as cultural appropriation, with a white guitarist putting an acceptable face on Indian music - the music manages to be technically very proficient without sounding to me as if it has much in the way of emotional depth, in stark contrast to the early Mahavishnu work. Add another half-star if you are particularly enamoured of Indian music being adulterated to market it to a white audience, I guess.