John McLaughlin & The 4th Dimension: Black Light | Album Review

With Shakti and the Mahavishnu Orchestra in the mid-70s, guitarist John McLaughlin was the first western musician to master the infinite complexities of Indian classical music, and though his current 4th Dimension group is a plugged-in jazz-fusion set up, the virtuoso technique and the turn-on-a-rupee arrangements are still there in spades.

Indeed, as the Yorkshire-born guitarist approaches his own mid-70s, he shows absolutely no sign of slowing down, and those who enjoy the sheer adrenalin rush of a man shredding an electric guitar will be more than satisfied with this.

And yet Black Light's most powerful moment comes when he puts aside his electric guitar:

El Hombre Que Sabía' is a tribute to his late friend and collaborator, Paco De Lucia, and in deference, McLaughlin shreds a nylon-stringed acoustic.