Way back in 1973, guitarists Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin surprised both their sets of fans by collaborating on a feeding frenzy of frenetic fret fusion by collaborating on Love, Devotion and Surrender, and album of searing guitar solos that still sounds exciting and provocative. Two score year later, they reunite and revisit a healthy number of those songs as well as some other thoughtful material. They front a band with Cindy Blackman Santana/dr, Dennis Chambers/dr, David K. Mathews/key, Tommy Anthony/g, Paul Rekow/perc, Tienne M’bappe/b, Benny Rietveld/b, Claude Nobs/harm and a pair of vocalists. A generation of performing may have mellowed them a bit, but the energy and passion of the music is still present. The pair of wailing guitars along with the thunderous drums on “A Love Supreme” still raises the blood pressure, and the infectious riffo on “The Creator Has A Master Plan” is anthematic. A couple of Miles Davis tunes from his fusion days, “Right Off” and “Black Satin” hit you like a Mack Truck. On the gentler side of things, a pair of acoustic pieces bring out a more meditative mood, with “Naima” never sounding better. The concert ends with the REAL roots of modern music, a boogying tune by John Lee Hooker (“Shake It Up and Go”) that completes the musical cycle. A guitar fans dream come true, with both heroes riding on their horses dressed in white.
Eagle Vision dvd
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