By the time Miles Davis introduced John McLaughlin to American audiences, the guitarist was already dazzling the British jazz crowd with his fluid technique, suggesting a schooled jazz player, unafraid to reflect rock influences. McLaughlin prominently guested on Miles's first two transitional fusion albums, "In A Silent Way" and "Bitches Brew" (ultimately others as well), while hooking up with Davis's drummer, Tony Williams, in the highly volatile Lifetime band, McLaughlin soon put together his own group, Mahavishnu Orchestra, an exciting combination of rock and jazz players, one of the few groups to live up to the potential of the fusion revolution. Unfortunately, that group was to be short-lived, and in its place came a ponderous outfit with the same name, who's main purpose seemed to be spreading McLaughlin's religious ideology. This group did not last long either.

What came next was Shakti,

where McLaughlin teamed with musicians from India, and featured a return to acoustic guitar. While Shakti lasted no longer than the previous outfits, McLaughlin would largely concentrate on the acoustic from this time on. Although, McLaughlin's popularity has never regained the stature he enjoyed with the original Mahavishnu Orchestra, he has continued to record many fine albums, and his trio efforts with Trilock Gurtu rank among the highlights of his career. ~ Steve Aldrich

Ragas meet jazz. Extraordinary energy. ~ Michael G. Nastos

Shakti made three albums:
Shakti with John McLaughlin: Live. 1975 Columbia PC 34162;CBS 81388; CBS-Sony 25AP117
Shakti: Handful of beauty. 1976 Columbia PC 34372;CBS 81664;CBS-Sony 25AP512
Shakti: Natural elements. 1977 Columbia JC 34980;CBS 82329;CBS-Sony 25AP851
In my humble opinion, Shakti is still McLaughlin's best band he ever played in. ~ Andres Didrik

The John McLaughlin Home Page.