THE TONY WILLIAMS LIFETIME — Turn It Over (1970-1997) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The better of the two albums the Tony Williams Lifetime recorded in 1970, Turn It Over, is a far more focused and powerful album than the loose, experimental Ego, and one of the more intense pieces of early jazz-rock fusion around. In parts, it's like Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsys with much better chops. It's more rock-oriented and darker-hued than their debut, 1969's Emergency!, and the temporary addition of ex-Cream member Jack Bruce on bass and vocals alongside stalwart guitarist John McLaughlin makes this something of a milestone of British progressive jazz. The album's primary flaw is that unlike the expansive double album Emergency!, these ten songs are tightly constricted into pop-song forms -- only a swinging cover of Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Once I Loved" breaks the five-minute mark, and then only barely -- which reins in these marvelous soloists too much. This is particularly frustrating since pieces like the two-part "To Whom It May Concern" feature some outstanding solos (especially from McLaughlin and organist Larry Young, the group's secret weapon) that are frustratingly, tantalizingly short. Expanded to a double album, Turn It Over would probably surpass Emergency! as a pioneering jazz-rock fusion release; as it is, it's an exciting but mildly maddening session. Stewart Mason  
Tracklist :
1     To Whom It May Concern - Them 4:21
Chick Corea
2     To Whom It May Concern - Us 2:57
Chick Corea
3     This Night This Song 3:46
Tony Williams
4     Big Nick 2:46
John Coltrane
5     Right On 1:52
Tony Williams
6     Once I Loved 5:11
Ray Gilbert / Antônio Carlos Jobim / Vinícius de Moraes
7     Vuelta Abajo 5:00
Tony Williams
8     A Famous Blues 4:13
John McLaughlin
9     Allah Be Praised 4:38
Larry Young
10     One Word 3:45
John McLaughlin
Lead Vocals – Jack Bruce
Credits :
Tony Williams - Drums, Vocals
John McLaughlin - Guitar, Vocals
Larry Young - Organ
Jack Bruce - Bass, Vocals

ALLAN HOLDSWORTH — Road Games (1983-2001) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Short but sweet: this 24-plus-minute re-release of an '80s-era solo effort originally appeared as a vinyl EP, and has never before been issued on CD. It is a unique mix of great vocals with a more rocking, bluesy, and jazzy quasi-mainstream song-themed balladic thrust. This release showcases Allan Holdsworth playing less "out there." Don't misunderstand -- the guitar is amazing: multi-voiced, fusion-fired, ethereally chorded, delightfully crystalline clear, note-flourished, and swooningly embellished. Add in the vocals of Jack Bruce for that Cream flashback or the I.O.U. band feel of Paul Williams' crooning, back to back with killer bass by Jeff Berlin and tastefully poised drums by Chad Wackerman, and you have fusion-rock bliss.Holdsworth addicts have waited a very long time for this to appear in the CD format. So go for it. It sounds great all over again. The original album cover graphics and notes are included. John W. Patterson

Tracklist :

1 Three Sheets To The Wind 4:15

Written-By – Allan Holdsworth

2 Road Games 4:15

Written-By – Allan Holdsworth, Paul Williams

3 Water On The Brain Pt. II 2:44

Written-By – Allan Holdsworth

4 Tokyo Dream 4:03

Written-By – Allan Holdsworth

5 Was There? 4:07

Written-By – Allan Holdsworth, Paul Williams

6 Material Real 4:44

Written-By – Allan Holdsworth, Paul Williams

Credits:

Bass Guitar – Jeff Berlin

Drums – Chad Wackerman

Guest, Backing Vocals – Joe Turano, Paul Korda, Paul Williams 

Guest, Lead Vocals – Paul Williams (tracks: 2)

Guest, Vocals – Jack Bruce

Guitar – Allan Holdsworth

SPECTRUM ROAD - Spectrum Road (2012) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Spectrum Road is a jazz-rock supergroup featuring bassist Jack Bruce, guitarist Vernon Reid, drummer Cindy Blackman-Santana, and organist John Medeski that formed as a tribute to the inspiration and music of Tony Williams' pioneering Lifetime group (of which Bruce was a member). In the process of playing Lifetime's music as a project, they became a bona fide band. All but two of these cuts are from Lifetime's catalog. The set begins with the scorcher "Vuelta Abajo," from 1970's Turn It Over album. All four members come storming out of the gate on a syncopated, intense series of riffs and stops. Blackman-Santana, a Williams disciple, plays furiously with countless rolls and fills yet never drops her sense of groove. She pushes hard at Bruce's bassline while Medeski washes it all with a counter pulse and Reid takes it over into the red zone. This is excess at its level best. The hippest thing is that not only does Bruce keep that insane pace, he revels in it and works with Blackman-Santana to keep the groove funky and weird. She takes the vocal on the spacey, 12-minute "Where," which builds via her rolls and Medeski's abstract painterly touches into a true freewheeling jam with Reid and Bruce going head to head. The group interplay on "Vashkar" (written by Carla Bley, and originally appeared on 1969's Emergency) is a manic showcase for Medeski and Reid, but it's the rhythm section that keeps moving the track further onto the ledge. Spectrum Road honors Williams' example by taking real chances with his music. The way they break down "There Comes a Time" ( from 1971's Ego) with Bruce's bluesy vocals holding the ground firm under the band's improvising moves it from a somewhat staid open modal blues into something more textured, aggressive, and expansive. Reid's jazz chops on "Coming Back Home" walk a line between swing and Hendrixian blues, as Medeski swells and feeds his every line. Reid's and Blackman-Santana's rock strut on "Wild Life" would be nearly processional were it not for Bruce's and Medeski's deeply funky undercurrent. Spectrum Road's self-titled debut delivers in full on the supergroup promise; in addition, they provide the kind of forward-looking tribute that a pioneer like Williams truly deserves. by Thom Jurek  
Tracklist:
1 Vuelta Abajo 5:30
Written-By – T. Williams
2 There Comes A Time 4:22
Written-By – T. Williams
3 Coming Back Home 4:40
Written-By – Jan Hammer
4 Where 12:44
Written-By – A. Hall, J. McLaughlin 
5 An T-eilan Muileach 4:33
Arranged By – Spectrum Road
Traditional
6 Vashkar 5:57
Written-By – C. Bley
7 One Word 4:18
Written-By – J. McLaughlin
8 Blues For Tillmon 5:41
Written-By – Blackman, Bruce, Medeski, Reid
9 Allah Be Praised 4:12
Written-By – L. Young
10 Wild Life 4:53
Written-By – T. Williams
Credits:
Bass – Jack Bruce
Drums – Cindy Blackman
Guitar – Vernon Reid
Mellotron – John Medeski
Organ – John Medeski
Vocals – Cindy Blackman, Jack Bruce

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN - Electric Guitarist (1979-1990) RM / APE (image+.cue), lossless

Since John McLaughlin's first two post-Shakti albums -- Electric Guitarist and Electric Dreams -- featured the word "electric" in their titles, it seems that the guitarist wanted to emphasize his more plugged-in side to those who might not have followed along on three previous releases featuring his acoustic world music band. He also thumbed through his impressive phone book to call in some of the cream of the 1977 crop of jazz fusionists to help him out on Electric Guitarist, a true return to form. Ex-Mahavishnu members Jerry Goodman and Billy Cobham assist in kicking things off just like in the old days with "New York on My Mind," a tune that could have been an outtake from his earlier Mahavishnu Orchestra work. Also along for the ride are Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, David Sanborn, Carlos Santana, Jack Bruce, and four legendary drummers including Cobham, Tony Williams, Jack DeJohnette, and Narada Michael Walden. Unfortunately, the credits don't specify who plays on which track (well-written liner notes would help there), but anyone familiar with the distinctive styles of these artists can easily pick them out. McLaughlin is in fine form throughout, especially when playing clean, staccato, bent notes on the ballad "Every Tear from Every Eye." The majority of the selections stay in a more subtle but amped-up groove as McLaughlin shifts from dreamy to a faster, more straight-ahead tempo on the seven-minute "Do You Hear the Voices that You Left Behind?" A duet with Billy Cobham on "Phenomenon: Compulsion" provides the set's most frantic fireworks as both musicians air out their chops on a breathless, galloping piece with some of the guitarist's most furious picking. by Hal Horowitz  
Tracklist  
1 New York On My Mind 5:46
Bass – Fernando Saunders
Drums – Billy Cobham
Electric Piano, Organ, Synthesizer [Mini Moog] – Stu Goldberg
Violin – Jerry Goodman
2 Friendship 7:01
Bass – Neil Jason
Congas – Armando Peraza
Drums – Narada Michael Walden
Guitar – Devadip Carlos Santana 
Organ – Tom Coster
Percussion – Alyrio Lima
3 Every Tear From Every Eye 6:51
Alto Saxophone – David Sanborn
Drums – Tony Smith
Electric Bass, Bass [Taurus Bass Pedal] – Alphonso Johnson
Piano – Patrice Rushen
4 Do You Hear The Voices That You Left Behind? 7:40
Acoustic Bass – Stanley Clarke
Drums – Jack DeJohnette
Piano, Synthesizer [Mini Moog] – Chick Corea
5 Are You The One? Are You The One? 4:41
Bass – Jack Bruce
Drums – Tony Williams 
6 Phenomenon: Compulsion 3:21
Drums – Billy Cobham
7 My Foolish Heart 3:26
Arranged By – John McLaughlin
Composed By – N. Washington, Victor Young

CHARLIE MARIANO – Helen 12 Trees (1976-2008) RM | 24bit/88.2Hz | FLAC (tracks), lossless

Saxophonist, flutist, and composer Charlie Mariano was 26 years into his recording career as a leader when he popped this wild bit of hardcore jazz-rock fusion out in 1976. He'd been playing with musicians from all over the world for most of his tenure, and Helen 12 Trees was no exception. The musicians Mariano was capable of recruiting had always been astonishing; in fact, it was his norm, but this group, despite being together for a very short time, was one of his finest. Mariano is aided by Jan Hammer from the Mahavishnu Orchestra on keyboards, former Graham Bond Organization and Cream bassist Jack Bruce, Soft Machine drummer John Marshall, Polish violin wizard Zbigniew Seifert, and Asian percussionist Nippy Noya. Just under 40 minutes in length, this is one of the great, under-heard records to ever come out of the fusion years. Tracks like "Parvati's Dance," where Mariano plays the Indian nagaswaram, a reed instrument that has a very unusual tonality, is gorgeous when juxtaposed against Seifert's droning violin or Hammer's high-pitched wandering keys. Bruce and Marshall are playing a near dub rhythm of pulse and bubble. "Thorn of a White Rose" is by Hammer, the only non-Mariano cut here. It carries within it dueling, winding lines of violin and saxophone, and Hammer becomes the funky part of the rhythm section where Bruce carries a straight series of four-note lines very forcefully as Marshall plays his kit in knotty military style with heavy snare. Mariano's solo hits the skronk a bit before Hammer comes right back to post-bop jazz on the Rhodes. "Neverglades Pixie" is a ballad gone to wonky funk, where the hand percussion on bells, vibes, metal rods, and other more standard instruments adds another layer to Marshall's rimshots as Seifert takes a solo right out of Cajun fiddling and the blues -- until he meets Hammer's big, cluttered chords and winds it out to the Gypsy jazz side of things. The bottom line is that over seven tracks, this set never runs out of surprises, grooves, kinetic energy, or astonishing improvisational ideas. But more than this, it never runs out of soul either, given Mariano's great sensitivity as a leader. There is pure poetry in this music, albeit of a very strident nature, and it's certainly some of the finest under Mariano's name as a leader -- it's a stone classic and one of the best examples of post-Miles jazz-rock fusion ever recorded! MPS was a visionary label, and kept putting out quality jazz, rock, and big-band records until it closed its doors in the late '70s, and this title is prime evidence of label boss Joachim Ernst Berendt's vision. Thom Jurek   

Tracklist 
1 Helen Twelvetrees 4:42
Alto Saxophone [Altosax] – Charlie Mariano
2 Parvati's Dance 7:32
Nadaswaram [Nagaswaram] – Charlie Mariano
3 Sleep, My Love 2:51
Flute – Charlie Mariano
4 Thorn Of A White Rose 4:30
Alto Saxophone [Altosax] – Charlie Mariano
Composed By – Jan Hammer
5 Neverglade Pixies 7:10
Soprano Saxophone [Sopranosax] – Charlie Mariano
6 Charlotte 6:33
Soprano Saxophone [Sopranosax] – Charlie Mariano
7 Avoid The Year Of The Monkey 5:30
Soprano Saxophone [Sopranosax] – Charlie Mariano
Credits
Bass Guitar – Jack Bruce
Composed By – Charlie Mariano (tracks: 1 to 3, 5 to 7)
Drums – John Marshall
Percussion – Nippy Noya
Piano [Acoustic Piano], Electric Piano, Synthesizer [Moog Synthesizer] – Jan Hammer
Violin – Zbigniew Seifert