Ambient/melodic/epic Jazz Fusion recommendations??

Hello everyone, I'm looking for tracks or albums of ambient jazz fusion music, my parameters are specially the track TIMELESS by John Abercrombie and "Night meets light" by the Dixie Dregs.

Also, the first Lyle Mays album, specially the final tracks (Northern Lights, Invocation, Closer to home) are a case in point. This whole album is very melodic and atmospheric in a special way. It's a pity Mays went for a very commercial route with the follow up and didn't achieve the same mastery he has with the beautiful compositions of this first instrumental and very lyrical album.

Bits of Alan Holdsworth also capture the essence of what I am talking about, and even the most melodic Mahavishnu Orchestra tracks, like HOPE, are very, very interesting.

I guess I'm speaking about beautiful, lyrical melodic music that make you feel epic and alive!

Any recommendations are very welcomed!

Thank you!

Try some Bill Frisell.  I was listening to his album "History Mystery" today while doing homework, so he's on my mind right now.

Pat Metheny's album "The Way Up"

lucas wrote: Rainer Brüninghaus, 'freigeweht' and 'continuum' Harold Budd - 'the pavilion of dreams'

I hadn't seen Brüninghaus mentioned on this site before.   Not sure that the Pavillion is exactly jazz fusion.  I think I remember reading a comment somewhere that said an excellent pick for fans of the original Star Trek theme.  If you want something jazz fusiony by Budd, I'd recommend his Harold Budd & Hector Zazou album Glyph.  Also Mark Isham has done some stuff you might like.  Check out Tibet, Vapor Drawings, and/or Castalia.  Also his collaboration with Art Lande - We Begin.

By the way, Night Meets Light is one of my favorite instrumentals of all time.  I really like Timeless, too.  You might want to check out David Earle Johnson's solo albums, as well...

Edited by Slartibartfast - November 16 2009 at 04:07

thing is, Abercrombie, Holdsworth and the others you mention are among the most unique and accomplished, and you sound like you have immaculate taste.. McLaughlin's My Goals Beyond worth checking, maybe DiMeola's World Sinfonia records and Jonas Hellborg's trippier albums [Zenhouse, etc.]

Lucas, the Rainer Brüninghaus records do strike the correct notes! Very good stuff very much in the vein of what I was looking for.

I just got the ISHAM album (we begin) and more comments will follow!

I'm trying to decode wrt the examples of musicians cited, Abercrombie (with Jan Hammer and  Jack DeJohnette) Timeless never struck me as ambient, rather an album I have to sit up and pay attention when it is played??? Certainly the nu.fusion/nu.jazz movement  have examples of ambient fusion - for instance some of Jon Hassell as mentioned, some of Bugge Wesseltoft's releases, as with some of EST's tunes. The epitomy of ambient jazz in my mind were the handful of recordings by John Themis in the 80's (oddly Gary Husband's first recordings too)  for the UK ambient/New Age label, Coda. Then you could pull in the 4 albums recorded by Jerry Goodman for for the US ambient specialist label Private Music, and some of the Windham Hill catalogue.

Dick thanks for the tips. Could you tell me the names of the Themis and Goodman albums you recommended?

Tim Leary: I remembered Oregon thanks to you and got their first album, great stuff and it does strike a note!

I am specially fond of the time these guys started using keyboards in the 80s, Holdsworth and the first Lyle Mays album are good examples. A pity Mays went on to make terrible solo albuns, in my view.

Jon, I will get that Metheny album you mentioned. I got "Secret Story" but it's too happy sounding and "World Music" for me.

Also, getting the Harold Budd album, thanks for the recommendation!

Supersilent - 6 (beautiful glacial improv jazz electronics)

Yragael wrote: Dick thanks for the tips. Could you tell me the names of the Themis and Goodman albums you recommended?

This  I picked on CD (and would recommend - but no obvious vendors at the moment):