Customer Reviews

Trio of Doom

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

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.

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.

I'm shocked by some of the previous reviews. This is a power trio for the ages! Think Cream, Led Zep, Rush. Three musical masters presenting an explosion of music. John McLaughlin unleashed completely on guitar, beyond where he went with Miles during the "Bitch's Brew" era, shredding past most modern rock guitarists. Jaco Pastorius' frenetic punk-jazz-rock bass, also blurring by most mortal guitarists. And Tony Williams, obviously the only drummer in the world up to this task. He's the force of a symphony or a battalion of drums all by himself. It's Fantastic! There's one major problem, IT'S WAY TOO SHORT!!! Still, it's 39 minutes of mad musical genius.

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.

The music, and musicianship, displayed on this album was instrumental in changing jazz/rock fusion. That doesn't mean everyone will like it (most people don't listen to fusion), but it clearly set a standard for many other talented jazz & rock musicians.

The liner notes clarify a lot of the back story, and shed light on why this is the only set of recordings from this group. A lot of work was done to bring quality of sound to the original recordings, and its sonic & fidelity qualities are good, but not great.

Everytime the CD comes up in my juke box, I replay it several times. There's a depth to the music that one doesn't hear the first time.

Although the playing time is rather short this is absolutely wonderful music by three of my favorite musicians. The visionary guitarist John McLaughlin, not only a master improvisatot but a briliant composer as well. Pastorius, one of the true innovators on the bass, and Tony Williams, perhaps only John Bonham could match him when it comes to combining the heavy and the subtle.

So this meeting is really a dream come true, and luckily there are no ego-clashes, instead it reminds me of Cream - certainly an inspiration for all three, Tony Williams Lifetime really an attempt to translate Cream and Hendrix into electric fusion. Where all three musicians and all three instruments have equal status in the furious jamming.

John's solo in "The Dark Prince" is truly in the zone , Jaco's take on "Continuum" beautiful, Tony driving and commenting all the time.

Just a shame they end the live-set on a kind of bum note with some incoherent jamming that can really only be identified as "Are You The One?" when McLaughlin plays the riff at the closure of the jam. Certainly a far cry from the majestic original on "Electric Guitarist" with John, Tony and another basslegend: Jack Bruce.

But all in all this music is just as inspiring today as it was that day in Havana. Created in the Now by some of the best musicians of our age.

I am a huge fan of jazz, fusion, and Jaco in particular. Though he was in pretty bad shape from his drug addictions when this album was recorded and released, this is truly a display of incredible musicianship and raw energy from all three. The live tracks are intense and fantastic but I could have done without the studio recordings and the multiple takes on Para Oriente. If you play drums, bass, or guitar, likely one of these members is your hero and you'll surely love it. If you are or think you might be into crazy prog/jazz/fusion stuff and want something new in your ipod, you'll love it. Everyone else, just buy it and if you hate it, John still has your money. Its not an easy album to find so just get it online. (R.I.P Jaco and Tony)

I have been a jazz-fusion fan for twenty years, and John Mclaughlin is one of my favorite guitar players. I'm also a fan of the late Jaco Pastorius, and love to hear anything by the late great bass player. I'm familiar with Tony Williams from his performances with John Mclaughlin, and he is an incredible drummer.

Until recently, I never could get hold of this recording, and am pretty pleased with it. It's a dynamic, fusion recording, with stirring live performances by all three performers. I was particularly impressed with Williams, who is a phenomenon in his own right.

Mclaughlin's playing is always inspiring, and is pretty much Mclaughlin standard. Jaco is, well....Jaco. I mean, he can be totally surprising or he can treat the event as kind of a blow off. I have heard that Mclaughlin strongly opposed releasing this recording, because he felt that Jaco's performance was sub-standard. He's still good, though. Jaco can stand up to the other two rather well, but he does tend to be a bit repetitive of certain arpeggios at times.

One glaring error is the title "Are you the One?", which should be titled "Phenomenon/Compulsion". Both of these recordings appeared on "Johnny Mclaughlin: Electric Guitarist". Sony should do its homework a little bit more.

All in all, if you are a fan of Mclaughlin, Pastorius and Williams, you will be pleased (as I am), with this one.

Nearly 30 years ago, the last supergroup took to the stage at a special event and performed sometimes sizzling fusion jazz in a frustratingly uneven 25 minute set. And the brief peek into the potential of the Trio of Doom ended in a studio session soon after the gig.

The Trio of Doom - John McLaughlin, guitar; Jaco Pastorius, bass; Tony Williams, drums - performed at the March 3, 1979, Havana (Cuba) Jam festival and entered a New York City studio for the only time five days later to work on some of the material from the show.

The only recorded music from the power trio is gathered for the first time in this self-titled CD. Three of the songs recorded in the studio did appear as "live" cuts from the concert - crowd noise was dubbed in - on the 1979, Havana Jam (Dark Prince) and Havana Jam 2 (Continuum, Para Oriente).

McLaughlin had deemed the live performance inferior to the studio work and balked at having the performance released on vinyl. Back in the day - 1970s and 1980s - many concert albums were hardly live recordings. They oftentimes had vast studio overdubs or entire songs redone in the studio. The practice was not out of the ordinary, but it does not diminish the criticism by music historians, fans and reviewers of what must be termed a fraudulant practice.

And though the concert has lightning-infused energy, sparked by some of McLaughlin's finest performances from that decade, after the set opened with a scorching drum improvisation by Williams.

McLaughlin powers through the group's initial number, Dark Prince, seemingly urging Pastorius to take the challenge. The Pastorius lead bass lines in Continuum are neat, but are nearly swallowed whole by McLaughlin's artful rhythm. The quirky intro to Para Oriente leads to excellent interplay between McLaughlin and Williams, with the band finally clicking on Are You The One, Are You The One?

Pastorius is much crisper in the studio, as the trio recorded Dark Prince, Continuum and Para Oriente. The bass work especially stands out on Continuum, with the band reaching for new heights on Para Oriente, after a pair of alternate takes that clock in at 1:05 and 20 seconds.

Through the extreme highs and lows, the importance of this short-lived group cannot be diminished in the nearly 40 minutes of music. This was an end of an era in many ways....and though the music sounds extremely fresh after the dust was brushed off the original tapes, it is the any number of "what if's" the Trio of Doom left after the studio session that may be the most frustrating for listeners.

I've read about this trio over the years. I'm very happy to report that this CD presents a very powerful set of music played by a very powerful group of musicians. It's jazz the way I like to hear it. Bless you Tony and Jaco.