Search - Trio of Doom, John McLaughlin :: Trio of Doom: John Mclaughlin Jaco Pastorius Tony

Legendary meeting, a bit less than legendary performance.

Michael Stack | North Chelmsford, MA USA | 07/05/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"In 1979, a group of jazz musicians gave a series of performances in Havana, one of the seemingly endless gestures of art reaching out through the blocade to Cuba. Legendary among these performances was the "Trio of Doom" performance, a power trio of guitarist John McLaughlin, bassist Jaco Pastorius and drummer Tony Williams, all at the heights of their powers. Their brief performance (about 25 minutes) was intended for partial release, but McLaughlin blocked it, instead pulling the group in the studio for a brief session that was then released, with crowd noise dubbed in, as these performances (a popular technique since at least Duke Ellington's legendary "Live at Newport" performance). This CD gathers together all the material-- the 25 minute live show and about 15 minutes of studio material.



McLaughlin's concerns may have been a bit extraneous-- the live performance has its flaws, to be certain (Jaco wanders off key briefly on "Dark Prince", "Are You the One, Are You the One?" threatens to fall apart), but there's a rare energy and power to the performance that really can't be underestimated, starting with Williams brief drum solo intro that sets the mood for high tension before welcoming his band mates on a racing "Dark Prince". For me, as a Jaco fan, the highlight is "Continuum", performed with grace as Pastorius and Williams stick true to the studio recording and McLaughlin offers a superb commentary that sounds both new and natural.



The studio material, particularly when presented next to the live takes sounds a bit sterile. "Dark Prince" probably best illustrates this-- live, it has an energy and urgency to it, McLaughlin's guitars sound dirty and fierce, Pastorius and Williams explode full of energy. In the studio, McLaughlin's tone, while still overdriven, cleans up and the rhythm section gets a bit too lockstep.



All of the material has been remastered and sounds fantastic-- the live material in particular is notable, clearly the source tapes were in good shape, this could have been recorded yesterday. The set is augmented by brief liner notes by McLaughlin and an essay discussing the performance and subsequent studio session.



This recording is difficult to rate-- the sentimental part of me wants to give it five stars and an endlessly positive, glowing review, but in all honesty, while this is a great recording and one that I'm ecstatic to have, it's not exactly the sort of jaw-dropping performance you'd hope it'd be. Fans of any of the three artists will want this, but don't expect something that'll shake the world."

The Bay of Gigs

KaiserSozay | 08/05/2007

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Other than a great drum solo by Tony Williams that starts this disc out, a burning solo by McLaughlin on "Dark Prince" and a decent version of Pastorius' "Continuum", there is really nothing here to listen to. Much of the rest of this CD is Pastorius playing away from the changes and McLaughlin trying to salvage the proceedings by playing either louder or faster. Williams tries desperately to hold it all together while Mclaughlin and Pastorius twiddle away at each other. McLaughlin was never happy with the results of this meeting in the first place and stated for years that he never wanted this recording to see the light of day. Knowing Pastorius was going through a lot of personal problems at this time and probably wasn't in top form here, I bought this mostly out of curiosity. You're better off spending your money on both the new essential McLaughlin and Pastorius CD's that just came out. You can get this if you're really that curious, but don't expect much."

Jaco

Kennedy Connor | 10/01/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I never really understood the "Jaco" phenomenon until I heard the live take of "Continuum." This is a must have cd for me. Mclaughlin also is in fine form. He seems out of his element in a way which allowed for some real on the spot improv. Forcing him to play with such melodic bass player demands some outside the box thinking for Mclaughlin and of course Williams is superb. I am not a purist or collector just a listener who longs for the early era of "fusion" when people were really playing by the seat of their pants."