This is arguably the best album of its kind. If you have never tried anything that falls into the Jazz-rock/Fusion category from the 70's then this is where I suggest you start.
Not only are there 10 tracks which average less than 5 minutes each, there is also no time for long meandering ... Read review
Advantages: The epitome of its kind Disadvantages: Too many notes and ideas for some?
This is arguably the best album of its kind. If you have never tried anything that falls into the Jazz-rock/Fusion category from the 70's then this is where I suggest you start.
Not only are there 10 tracks which average less than 5 minutes each, there is also no time for long meandering and irrelevant soloing or ego-led self indulgence. The whole album is riff driven and a supreme example of concise and meaningful guitar playing but ... ...excluded. At times the interchange between guitar, violin and keyboards is exquisite, eg Terrestrial Celestial Commuters and throughout the drumming of Billy Cobham fairly propels the whole thing along. Generally speaking the playing is flawless but still has soul and life and not a few tunes or different moods.
If you are still not convinced and fancy yourself as a conoisseur of guitarists, just try the title track - I once played ... more
This is arguably the best album of its kind. If you have never tried anything that falls into the Jazz-rock/Fusion category from the 70's then this is where I suggest you start.
Not only are there 10 tracks which average less than 5 minutes each, there is also no time for long meandering and irrelevant soloing or ego-led self indulgence. The whole album is riff driven and a supreme example of concise and meaningful guitar playing but not to the extent that the other two soloists are excluded. At times the interchange between guitar, violin and keyboards is exquisite, eg Terrestrial Celestial Commuters and throughout the drumming of Billy Cobham fairly propels the whole thing along. Generally speaking the playing is flawless but still has soul and life and not a few tunes or different moods.
If you are still not convinced and fancy yourself as a conoisseur of guitarists, just try the title track - I once played this to a friend who literally cowered on the sofa at the slicing power of John Mclaughlin's playing. Overall this album is not just jazz playing but also out and out rock which avoids the discordance and bloodyminded quirkiness that puts so many people off from listening to this kind of music.
If you fancy blowing a few musical cobwebs out of your life then just try the opening 10 minutes of this album - it might even get you into Miles Davis!!!!
Skinleopard 11.02.2006
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Review of Birds Of Fire [Remastered] - Mahavishnu Orchestra
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This is a classic! Mahavishnu Orchestra's best! John McLaughlin in fine form, a beginning of Jazz-Fusion music. I had the original vinyl, and wore it out! ...
RocRizzo 08.03.2008
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Product Information for "Birds Of Fire [Remastered] - Mahavishnu Orchestra" »
Product details
Title
Birds Of Fire [Remastered]
Performer
Mahavishnu Orchestra
Genre
Jazz Instrument
Release Date
07/08/2000
Recomended Retail Price
8.99 GBP
Original Release Year
1973
Label / Distributor
Sony Jazz / Sony Music/Arvato Services
Guest Artist(s)
Mahavishnu Orchestra
Engineer
Ken Scott; Jim Green
Producer
The Mahavishnu Orchestra
Pieces in Set
1
Studio / Live
Studio
Stereo
Stereo
Format
Performer
EAN
5099706608127
Catalogue Number
CK 66081
SPAR code
AAD
Additional notes
Album Notes
Mahavishnu Orchestra: Jerry Goodman (electric violin); Jan Hammer (piano, Fender Rhodes piano, Mini-Moog synthesizer); John McLaughlin (acoustic guitar, electric 6 & 12-string guitars); Rick Laird (acoustic & electric basses); Billy Cobham (drums, gong). Recorded at Trident Studios, London, England and CBS Studios, New York, New York in 1972. Includes liner notes by Bill Milkowski. All tracks are digitally remastered. Guitarist John McLaughlin was in on the birth of jazz-rock fusion, having played with both Miles Davis and Tony Williams' Lifetime in the early '70s. McLaughlin applied what he'd learned from these artists to his own pioneering fusion band, the Mahavishnu Orchestra. This second effort is the Orchestra's definitive recording. The tempestuous mix of jazz, rock, and Eastern influences is at its height here, and all of the players in this notoriously ego-plagued group challenge themselves--and each other--to push the envelope. The themes, generally stated by McLaughlin and searing electric violinist Jerry Goodman, sound regal, unfolding in an elegant, magisterial way. Drummer Billy Cobham (another Miles alumnus) provides pounding polyrhythms over which McLaughlin and Goodman mix it up with keyboardist Jan Hammer. Hammer's synthesizer solos blazed a new trail for the synthesizer as a lead instrument, particularly in his guitar-like use of pitch-bend. The pastoral, acoustic strains of "Thousand Island Park" provide a brief respite before the listener is hurled back into the firestorm. "Hope" could be a distant cousin of Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir," while the closing "Resolution" bears similarities to RED-era King Crimson, making it plain that BIRDS OF FIRE takes both sides of the jazz-rock sound seriously.
Album Reviews
Q (5/92, p.97) - 3 Stars - Good - "...an accurate reflection of the fiery passion and keen sense of urgency felt by a cast of virtuoso musicians rejoicing in the unshakable belief that nothing is impossible..." JazzTimes (11/00, p.70) - "...A snapshot of the band at its interactive best....established the standards for rock-fusion performance..." Uncut (10/00, p.84) - 5 stars out of 5 - "...Fiercely passionate and spectacular[ly] spiritual music..." Alternative Press (11/00, p.118) - "An indisputable jazz-fusion classic...combining brain-burning virtuosity with profoundly soulful mysticism..."
Titles on disc 1
1.
Birds Of Fire
2.
Miles Beyond
3.
Celestial Terrestrial Commuters
4.
Sapphire Bullets Of Pure Love
5.
Thousand Island Park
6.
Hope
7.
One Word
8.
Sanctuary
9.
Open Country Joy
10.
Resolution
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11/02/2006
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