Customer Reviews

All Night Wrong

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Allan Holdsworth is so transcendently excellent as a jazz/rock guitarist, so inventive, so hard on himself, and so exploratory, that his fan base is minimal. However, those "in the know" heap upon him the highest praises. In other words, he is so good, few people like him; but those that do heep one superlative after another in their attempts to capture something of his art in words.

Mr. Holdsworth's music is not easy to find, at least in the US, so I cannot rate this against his entire corpus of work. However, I find it to be the best I have heard thus far and the best band and venue. A note on the wrapping claims this is Mr. Holdsworth's first live CD. I have "I.O.U Live" (which is superb, and feature the same line up with the addition of Paul Williams on vocals), but apparently that was a bootleg, according to the official Allan Holdsworth web page (www.therealallanholdsworth.com).

There are no vocals on this recording, which allows all the bandmates to stretch out and up. The songs all allow for--in fact, demand--extended improvization, a challenge well heeded by Mr. Holdsworth, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Wackerman. The latter is mixed very hot with stellar fidelity, which is apt given both his power and subtlety. He plays with a large set, laden with tom-toms and cymbols (including very small, chime-sounding ones), but plays them in a more jazz-like way than any heavy metal drummer with a comparable drum kit.

Holdsworth is an unending wellspring of creativity, weaving mostly legato textures at breakneck speeds without ever shredding just for the sake of speed alone. Call it high velocity tastefullness. He also displays his symphonic sense a few times on the synthaxe, although this is not credited on the CD itself. He is listed only as playing "guitar."

The only surprising thing is the low volume of Holdsworth's guitar at times. It is noticeable on the very first solo. Wackerman is mixed higher than Holdsworth, although he never drowns him out. Unlike a Satriani recording, where he tends to dominate all other instruments, this is a jazz setting, so the lower volume probably testifies to the ethos of group improvization.

Holdsworth is, to tease out a cliche, in a category by himself. Consider some three players that one might want to compare him with.

1. Steve Morse. Mr. Morse is lightening fast and often quite satisfying, but more in the rock idiom. He relies on false harmonics and echo effects. Not so for Mr. Holdsworth, who trades more on the actual notes than any effects given to them. Moreover, although the Dregs have a jazz sensibility at times, Morse could never sustain the kind of free-wheeling jazz soloing that is the heart of Holdsworth's playing. Steve Morse Band songs are seldom over five minutes long.

2. Eric Johnson. While his style is fast and fluid, his songs are not as technically challenging as Holdsworth's. Moreover, he is really rooted in blues and rock, not jazz. Of course, the tone and vibratto are beautiful. (But those inane vocals!)

3. Joe Satriani. Most of Joe's speed comes from tapping. He is the king of power chords and special effects (who plays the wah-wah pedal better today?), and is a very emotional player. That comes from the blues. However, there is almost no group improvisation in his music--except the power endings to some songs live. He would be lost in almost any Holdsworth piece.

One could go on...but I won't. If you desire guitar virtuosity and group improvisation with a hard, electronic edge, buy this CD! You will not be disappointed.

Douglas Groothuis

I bought this CD from Allan himself (who autographed it after the show) when he played in Denton, TX a couple of years ago.

This is an incredible live recording. Allan's playing can be completely overwhelming to the listener (in a good way). But the way I make sense of what I'm hearing is to closely follow Jimmy Johnson's bass lines. The bass provides an elegantly solid impression of the melodic changes and progression of the song. Listening against this backdrop, Allen's unbelievable/amazing guitar work takes on an even higher and greater sonic relevance. It's hard to take the main listening focus off of the guitar, but if one can do this, the a very rewarding musical experience will be achieved.

This is a MUST CD for any true Holdsworth fan. Allan is a class act, start to finish, and an artist in the truest sense.

I'm not an AH scholar. Before this recording, I was only familiar with his work in Tony William's Lifetime II and with Bill Bruford (solo & UK). Wow! This is hard-boiled stuff, yet with a beauty and elegance all its own.

On a side note, Chad Wackerman is a revelation. Curse you, Frank Zappa, for that infernal '80s drum-machine sound!

Like I said, I'm not an AH scholar, but now I'm a fan.

For those not familiar with AH's work: If ever Amazon's samples didn't accurately portray an artist, it's here. All of these pieces are -just- about to break out into the most exciting, demanding, advanced guitar solos in existance. We all have our favorites for a variety of reasons, but when I plan on playing electric guitar cds, I have to save AH for last, or everyone who follows will sound like a beginner.

AH is many things: A cult icon; An innovator par excellence; A FREAKISHLY talented guitarist! But what endears him to me above all else is most evident on this long awaited live album. His music is just heart-rendingly beautiful.

Yes, he's a shred-master, but that's hardly the point. He can play so fast that individual notes are barely distinguishable, and to the uninitiated this can make his solos seem frantic. The trick is to hear this 'note density' in the same way as one would experience a high resolution digital photo. You don't grouse because the pixels are too small to identify individually, you revel in the clarity of the image.

To continue the analogy, the 'soundscapes' Holdsworth paints on this album are gorgeous beyond words, once you find the proper perspective. It's well worth the effort.

Allan Holdsworth is one of the electric guitar's stellar craftsmen; his legato phrasing and chordal techniques are jaw-dropping examples of accomplished technical prowess. But, alas, somewhere along the line of developing his method, he appears to have left the music behind. The problem is a noticeable lack of soul, and by that I do not mean rhythm- or blues-derived artifice. The playing on this CD, while technically awesome, is sadly meandering and melodically mostly vacant, with "Water on The Brain, Part II" the exception. To hear what Holdsworth is really capable in terms of pure musicality, check out his acoustic collaborations with pianist Gordon Beck.

Having seen AH 3 times (most memorably in the intimate setting of the old Jonathan Swift's in Cambridge, Ma.), I feel this CD captures the essence of a Holdworth trio in a live performance. It was a long time ago, but I still recall being almost overwhelmed at times by the peaks in musical intensity of the trio's performance (w/ Gary Husband & Gary Willis). I feel enough of that intensity is here on this live recording. You can't beat the real thing, but this is pretty damn good.

I agree that AH is in a class by himself. But the "timbre and sonority" of his playing have acutally been copied quite well. Check out Allessandro Benvenuti or Derryl Gabel. Harmonicly, there's the great Bill Connors who uses similar chord clusters. Brett Garsed's playing has some Holdsworth lines worked in, too. There's also a Japanese guy who's supposed to sound like Holdsworth but just plays fast and sloppy.

The only similarity between Allan Holdsworth and Steve Morse or Al DiMeola is that all of them can play really fast. To my ear, Morse is playing those picking excercises you see in Guitar Player...perfectly exectuted; mechanical as hell. Al DiMeola plays a mix of classical and scales. One of my favorite tracks on his great album Casino, is little more than major scales, up and down...but very fast. Now Holdsworth may be working off scales, too--but if you've seen his instructional video you know they're not human scales.

Its also pointless to compare Holdsworth to Eric Johnson or Jeff Beck. These guys are true originals but they're rock players, period.

Everything AH does is interesting--including some stuff he says he wishes he never recorded. But for a live album I'd suggest the boot, Live in Japan or if that's too much trouble "AH Then". But first get Metal Fatigue or I.O.U. and see what the fuss is all about.

To be honest, this recording which is EXACTLY the same as the import and is performed exceptionally well. Just to be clear, this recording fits along the lines of All Too Soon record as opposed to Hard Hat Area or Sand. Allan uses a clean electric guitar on most tracks and all the players, play better than many modern jazz musicians. One would consider this sort of a subdued jazz fusion live recording that will appeal to non-fusion listeners alike (If you like EXCELLENT musicians!). Jimmy Johnson & Chad Wakerman are completely in sync with the music. As a matter of fact. I would "accuse" the musicians of overdubbing, but they most clearly CAN perform at this level LIVE (I have seen them!)! Clean, non abrasive incredible spin!

A very amazing performance, but as often happens with Holdsworth's records, the sound is not very warm, rather cold and compressed. If Holdsworth's records were mixed/mastered differently with much warmer and fuller fat sound, all his EXCEPTIONAL music will become even more EXCEPTIONAL.