German-Hungarian musician Leslie Mandoki mixes jazz and rock with an all star cast on this ambitious double album filled with music and messages. The list of guests is quite impressive, including guitarists Mike Stern, Al Di Meola, drummer Simon Phillips, bassist Richard Bona, saxist Bill Evans and trumpeters Till Bronner and Randy Brecker, also including possibly the last session of Jack Bruce. The two discs are divided into themes, the first disc entitled “Living In The Gap” and the second one being “Hungarian Pictures.
The first one includes 12 songs Brecker and Bronner in a Freddie Hubbard mood on “Wake Up” , Stern searing through an impassioned “I’m Not Your Enemy” and Ian Anderson singing and playing flute on “Mother Europe” and “Let Your Music Show The Way”. Di Meola solos on “Welcome To Real Life” and some nice tenor work by Ada Brecker glows on “Let The Music Show You The Way”.
The second disc focuses on Hungarian themes by Bela Bartok and is both richly dark and alluring. Di Meola shines on “Utopia For Realists” and “Transylvania Dances” with brooding clarinet work by John Helliwell. Long sepia shadows are cast on “The Torch” and thunder crashes on “Barbaro” with penetrating vocals by Tony Carey, Nick Van Eede and Mandoki himself. Ambitious in sounds and story.