Search - Miroslav Vitous :: Magical Shepherd

From Fusion Jazz to Proto House-music

Peter McLuskie aka Prof. EZ | WELLINGTON New Zealand | 07/21/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Magical Shepherd is one of the most significant releases in mid '70's electro fusion jazz music, and ironically remains largely unrecognised. It is most decidedly unlike anything that else Miroslav Vitous recorded, with funky bass lines and extensive tape looping. A collaboration with Herbie Hancock, Magical Shepherd expands beyond the usual format of fusion jazz at the time, and ends up (on side one at least) producing sounds more reminiscent of modern house and jungle music (check out the use of the disco beats and loops in New York city). The atmospheric vocals by Cheryl Grainger and Onike would fit nicely into any recordings by Goldie.I cannot recommend this album highly enough. If you like electro fusion jazz and do not have a copy, then your life is the poorer for such an omission. If you like Herbie Hancock's electro fusion work then this album is compulsory listening. I have played it extensively on Radio Active 89 FM...and have always received calls from local club DJs amazed at the existence of the recording. As coordinator of Radio Active's Jazz Show it has become my personal mission to ensure that this recording gets the wide recognition that it deserves. Buy it."

UNDERAPPRECIATED MASTERPIECE

Milesfan! | Margate, Florida United States | 03/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After being ousted from Weather Report, Miroslav Vitous had something to prove. He wanted to show that he could create electronic funk on a level with Zawinul. He didn't reach that level, but he came damn close. He enlisted Herbie Hancock, James Gadson, Airto and Jack DeJohnette and created some of the weirdest, spaciest funk fusion of the 70's. Keyboard players (like me) will instantly recognize that Herbie and Miroslav went ARP all the way. There are no sounds like them. The two female voices are distorted, Airto's bizarre percussion is up front. For Miroslav, clearly commercial success was not an issue. He wanted to make a statement, and he made it."

Still as awful as ever!

Gavin Wilson | 03/01/2005

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Miroslav Vitous deserves immense credit for having performed on one of the two two-bass masterpieces of popular music, namely Weather Report's BOOGIE-WOOGIE WALTZ. (The other two-bass classic, to my ears, is Pink Floyd's ONE OF THESE DAYS, if you're interested.)



Some years after leaving Weather Report, Miroslav also recorded the sublime JOURNEY'S END for ECM. But in between, he recorded this total bummer, MAGICAL SHEPHERD. Critics at the time panned it. The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide gave it two stars out of five. (But I still bought it.) Everyone was expecting Vitous to follow the path of Weather Report's MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER and create something in the jazz-rock or world music vein. Definitely something semi-cerebral. Instead we got an early funk prototype which was almost danceable. Although the vocals were more Henry Cow than Chic, I would imagine Nile Rodgers and Bernie Edwards learnt many lessons from this album on how not to do funk. The influence of Herbie Hancock (pre-Headhunters) is everywhere. Jack DeJohnette plays on just two of the tracks, and he would probably prefer not to remember them.



Somewhat akin to Return to Forever, there was an interest in matters of space, the universe, religion and ... um ... New York City.



The album is no clearer on CD than it was on LP. The CD inlay card mentions that 'the anomalies on track 1 are part of the original recording', and by the 'anomalies', I assume they mean the singing, the composition and Vitous's guitar-playing.



This is definitely one to avoid, unless you're writing a history of either the evolution of funk or the tragic paths of Weather Report's bassists. Fortunately Vitous managed to pick himself after this one and recorded the half-decent MAJESTY MUSIC, which is currently unavailable on CD."