John McLaughlin - The Promise

Never Before on VINYL!!! 180g Double Vinyl Pressed in Germany with Deluxe Packaging! Recorded on 180g heavy-weight vinyl to ensure quality sound, packaged in gatefold cover, and covered by premium protective vinyl outer sleeve. The “Play 33 1/3 LP Series” features masterpiece albums released in the '90s converted for the first time world-wide to analog Long Playing record. The album cover and package created after months of graphic work and processes by hand enhanced its excellence and to ensure the record’s superb sound quality, the German MMP, who undertook the record production of EMI Germany and Universal, utilized a heavy weight 180g vinyl LP to contain the sound. Khiov who was in charge of the planning and production of many LP miniature series took charge of the album cover production spending 6 months to create a masterpiece. This project was highly scrutinized passing rigid testing at the factory in Germany. Even the performers themselves had not been able to put their hands on the LP version of their own albums as their home country had not produced them. The LPs produced by this project certainly have become must-have items by LP lovers all around the world. In the age where faster and more convenient is thought to be better, the increase in demand for the retro vinyl LP worldwide is clearly attributed to the satisfaction from the sound offered by analog products impossible to be replicated by CD and digital products and the delight of touching, feeling, and possessing this masterpiece-like large artwork. Furthermore, LP records have both rarity and history that increase their value over time and serve as an attractive factor for collectors. John McLaughlin's 1995 album was originally released on CD only on Verve Records. The cover features a Magic-Eye graphic that contains a hidden image. McLaughlin is joined by artists such as Jeff Beck, Al Di Meola, Michael Brecker and more! "Originally issued in 1996 when he was 54, the Promise offers a summation of all the places John McLaughlin has been in his career, and points directly toward his future. Featuring a wide range of musicians including appearances by the Free Spirits, the Guitar Trio, and an electric version of Shakti, the Promise is easily the most wide-ranging and diverse offering of McLaughlin's long career. Its contents encompass everything from straight post-bop and swinging soul-jazz to fusion to modern takes on East Indian music as it meets the West. As if this weren't enough, there are even moments with spoken word laced throughout, such as a verse of Dante read by Stefania Bombi toward the end of his scorching, funky, soul-jazz number "Thelonius Melodius" with B-3 organist Joey DeFrancesco and drummer Dennis Chambers. The set kicks off with one of its finest moments, a guitar-to-guitar reading of John Lewis' "Django" with Jeff Beck (bassist Pino Palladino, drummer Mark Mondesir, and drummer Tony Hymas round it out). Beck's solo is first; it is expansive as it moves from a gorgeous restating of the melody through slinky harmonic extrapolations. McLaughlin's answer is ambitious and intuitive. They then move toward one another and the melody, complementing each other perfectly. "El Ciego" is a complex, flamenco-tinged jazz number with McLaughlin trading knotty lines and soulful solos with Al di Meola and Paco de Lucia. "Jazz Jungle" is late 20th century fusion at its blazing best with Michael Brecker, Chambers, Don Alias, James Genus, and Jim Beard beginning almost nebulously before ratcheting the tempo and idea palettes to dizzying heights (Brecker is particularly brilliant). "The Wish," with Zakir Hussein, Nishat Khan, and Trilok Gurtu, looks deeply into Indian classical music balanced by a European gaze. McLaughlin's engagement with Khan's sitar creates nearly rapturous expression, all the while contained inside a texture that is as atmospheric as it is exotic. "Shin Jin Rui" employs the same band as "Jazz Jungle," with the exception of the saxophone, played by David Sanborn. His playing is riskier than on his own records, his alto juxtaposed with McLaughlin's guitar, a study in funky, electric jazz modernism. The set closes with a lovely all-acoustic reading of Jimmy Rowles' "The Peacocks" with guitarist Phillipe Loi and bassist Yan Maresz, and a verse by Lorca read by Susana Beatrix as an end cap. Ultimately, the Promise stands as one of McLaughlin's towering achievements as a guitarist and leader." - allmusic.com Features: • Play 33 1/3 Series • 180g heavyweight vinyl pressed by MMP • Double LP • 8-page booklet • Black poly-lined inner sleeves • Gatefold jacket with magic-eye graphic • Project designed & sleeve made by Khiov • Originally released in 1995 on CD only Musicians: John McLaughlin, guitars, keyboards Don Alias, percussion Jim Beard, keyboards Jeff Beck, guitar Michael Brecker, saxophone Dennis Chambers, drums Vinnie Colaiuta, drums Joey DeFrancesco, organ, trumpet Paco De Lucia, guitar Al Di Meola, guitar Zakir Hussain, tabla Nishat Khna, sitar, vocals David Sanborn, saxophone Sting, bass Selections: LP 1 1. Django 2. Thelonious Melodius 3. Amy and Joseph 4. No Return 5. El Ciego LP 2 1. Jazz Jungle 2. The Wish 3. English Jam 4. Tokyo Decadence 5. Shin Jin Rui 6. The Peacocks