Bathed In Lightning: John McLaughlin, the 60s and the Emerald Beyond

[A Lark Ascending]

Over half way now. Very interesting all round, though I do wonder if he really wanted to write a bio of Duffy Power!

Just reached 1968/9 (Experiments with Pops, Windmill Tilter, Extrapolation) - McLaughlin served a long apprenticeship before emerging as a solo star.

Quite a lot of coverage of the John Stevens/SME/Little Theatre/Old Place areas of activity.

JM and Howard Riley playing in pubs in 1968! According to Riley the second side of 'Angle' was supposed to be a mixture of collaborations including the duo with JM. But the latter had gone off to find himself on a beach in the north-east.

If you like McLaughlin or are interested in the Brit jazz of this era, worth getting, despite the occasional typos.

Edited April 8, 2014 by A Lark Ascending

[sidewinder]

Thanks - looks like I'll have to put an order in. If it's covering the 'Experiments With Pops' and 'Windmill Tilter' I'll have to have it.

[A Lark Ascending]

"Hair - At It's Hairiest" too! Makes want to hear it.

[sidewinder]

The Fontana LP of that one is better than you would think. A nice session in fact - I've got the feeling that it was reissued on CD (possibly Lake?). Kenny Wheeler is on it too.

[A Lark Ascending]

What I read today makes me want to read this:

He comes across as quite the character.

[Head Man]

http://nlgbbbblth.wordpress.com/2011/07/12/lp-256-sandy-brown-and-his-gentlemen-friends-hair-at-its-hairiest-fontana-1969/

...and did you know there's a site dedicated(?) to "Hair" recordings?

http://ovanwerven.nl/Studio/Studio_Albums.htm

Edited April 9, 2014 by Head Man

[sidewinder]

http://nlgbbbblth.wordpress.com/2011/07/12/lp-256-sandy-brown-and-his-gentlemen-friends-hair-at-its-hairiest-fontana-1969/

...and did you know there's a site dedicated(?) to "Hair" recordings?

http://ovanwerven.nl/Studio/Studio_Albums.htm

Love that 'Drastically reduced to 49p' sticker !

[Head Man]

http://nlgbbbblth.wordpress.com/2011/07/12/lp-256-sandy-brown-and-his-gentlemen-friends-hair-at-its-hairiest-fontana-1969/

...and did you know there's a site dedicated(?) to "Hair" recordings?

http://ovanwerven.nl/Studio/Studio_Albums.htm

Love that 'Drastically reduced to 49p' sticker !

Yes, I guess copies can't have been flying off the shelf........

[A Lark Ascending]

They missed a trick.

Could have reissued it in 1973 as a McLaughlin album with a picture like this on the sleeve:

Like those 'John Coltrane' albums you see where he was actually a fairly minor sideman, looking all spiritual on the cover.

Edited April 10, 2014 by A Lark Ascending

[sidewinder]

http://nlgbbbblth.wordpress.com/2011/07/12/lp-256-sandy-brown-and-his-gentlemen-friends-hair-at-its-hairiest-fontana-1969/

...and did you know there's a site dedicated(?) to "Hair" recordings?

http://ovanwerven.nl/Studio/Studio_Albums.htm

Love that 'Drastically reduced to 49p' sticker !

Yes, I guess copies can't have been flying off the shelf........

Would you buy an LP with a p*ssed off hairy Scotsman in kilt and not much else on the cover?

[A Lark Ascending]

Finished it last night.

Not a great book but one that does the job and would interest anyone with a feel for McLaughlin or those times.

Part of the trouble seems to be that McLaughlin is such a private man that it's hard to really get a full picture of him. Harper makes up for this with lots of detail about things going on around him without really illuminating the subject of the book.

The only time McLaughlin seems to come out of his shell is in the early American and Mahavishnu years. The influence of Sri Chimnoy (which made my skin creep) seemed to turn him from a shy individual into a somewhat priggish individual who had seen the light and insisted on sharing that with all. When everything fell apart round about 1975/6 he seems to returned to the more retiring character.

Harper lost my sympathy towards the end - at one point he declares 'Birds of Fire' 'the pinnacle of all 20thC music'!!!!!! (to be fair in his footnote he does mention the silliness of rating music, but...). He also has a rant at the modern world - he's clearly had some hard times in the public services. The sort of personal axe-grinding that should have been edited out.

[Jazzjet]

Still in the early stages of the book and enjoying it. Not the greatest writing style but I've read far worse. The early 60s detail is fascinating and evocative. So much so that I'm sorely tempted to get the recent Graham Bond box set - 'Wade In The Water'. Duffy Power is an interesting character as well. Someone from the Larry Parnes stable who saw the light and made some fine records, some with GBO and McLaughlin.

[Jazzjet]

Still working my way through this and finding it surprisingly enjoyable, particularly the section on the London 60s music scene. In reality a very small scene with practically everybody playing in each other's bands. It must have been great experience and I didn't appreciate how many different types of band Johnny Mac played in at the time.

One constant musical colleague was baritone saxophonist Glenn Hughes, who is mentioned in glowing terms several times and described as at least the equal of Ronnie Ross. I was vaguely aware of his name in the context of Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames but I'm not aware of any more jazz-oriented recordings. Anyone aware of any?

[sidewinder]

Just picked up a hard copy of this book (came across it in a Waterstones rack when I wasn't even looking for it). I see that the bonus material is available on amazon as a kindle download for £2.95. A quick browse through the book indicates that it's packed full of valuable period detail and the kindle stuff looks worth grabbing too. The related website is good, with some interesting audio and video material. http://www.bathedinlightning.com/about/about_bathed_in_lightning.html

[sidewinder]

One constant musical colleague was baritone saxophonist Glenn Hughes, who is mentioned in glowing terms several times and described as at least the equal of Ronnie Ross. I was vaguely aware of his name in the context of Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames but I'm not aware of any more jazz-oriented recordings. Anyone aware of any?

Good question - I was going to ask the same thing. I presume that it is Glenn Hughes on baritone on Fame's 'Yeah Yeah' (composer Pat Patrick - tune selected by fellow-Bari Hughes perhaps?) and have always admired the playing on that one.

So far this book is surpassing all expectations. The sections on Herbie Goines Night-Timers and the Session years at EMI and Decca are particularly good. Never, ever did I think there could possibly be a connection between Wally Whyton, Ollie Beak & co from 'Five O'Clock Club' and Johnny Mac but here it is. Not only him either but Dick Morrissey, Ray Warleigh and Harry Beckett too !

Edited August 15, 2014 by sidewinder

[RogerF]

The Fontana LP of that one is better than you would think. A nice session in fact - I've got the feeling that it was reissued on CD (possibly Lake?). Kenny Wheeler is on it too.

yes this was reissued by Lake as a twofer; the title of the album is Work Song (LACD160). The only regrettable thing about this reissue is that is doesn't have the original cover of Sandy Brown naked but for a sporran and a wig, oh and a bass clarinet. It's a brilliant album - also features George Chisholm on trombone. Still haven't had time to read the damned Johnny Mac book yet - on my "to do" list! Have downloaded the Appendix onto my Kindle which is only around £3 to purchase.

[sidewinder]

Still haven't had time to read the damned Johnny Mac book yet - on my "to do" list! Have downloaded the Appendix onto my Kindle which is only around £3 to purchase.

You are in for a treat, Roger. So far, along with Ian's book, I would say that this book (and probably also along with the meandering 'Innovations in British Jazz' book) provides the best overview of the 1960s British modern jazz scene of any I have read. I plan on downloading that addendum this weekend to find out more about Big Pete Deuchar etc.

I remember George Chisholm being on the TV a lot in that 60s/70s period - especially on children's TV, 'Crackerjack' and the like as well as that minstrel show. Usually his act was mainly slapstick followed by a few riffs on the 'bone. That would be around the time that Kenny Wheeler & co. were doing Mr Benn.

It's a shame that there is no recorded footage of that Wally Whyton show with the musical backing. According to the book, Danny Thompson bought and paid off his London house on the proceeds !

Edited August 15, 2014 by sidewinder

[sgcim]

Just finished this one. I read it because I've always been interested in whether Johnny Mac was actually a mainstream (bop) jazz guitarist before he hit the fusion big time.

The answer to that came pretty quick, when on page 91, Rick Laird, who certainly was a mainstream jazz player in the 60s, said this:

"I never considered John a jazz guitar player. Not in the same sense I'd consider Jim Hall or someone like that... He didn't know the repertoire in the same way that I did, because I'd been exposed to it a lot with Ronnie Scott...He didn't strike me as being a real jazz enthusiast-more individual, and he did become quite individual.

I still don't consider him a jazz guitar player...The way I would describe jazz guitar at that time was someone who knew the repertoire of material that was popular at the time, like Miles Davis compositions, all the jazz standards-"ATTYA", Stella By Starlight", those type of standard jazz things.

He wasn't very knowledgeable in that area at all. Not a criticism, just an observation. He was an interesting guitar player, but not a jazz guitar player."

I've found JM's attempts at mainstream jazz pretty sad- the Bill Evans album debacle,, the corny-ass "Cherokee" performance on the Tonight Show, the poor man's Django attempt on Coryell's "Spaces" LP ('"Rene's Song").

Sure, Johnny Mac has amazing chops, but it takes more than chops to bop.

One of the few UK guitarists of that time who could play mainstream jazz well was mentioned a few times in the book, Terry Smith.

The author, definitely of a more rock/folk background, seems confounded when Terry Smith won the Melody Maker Poll for Jazz Guitar in 1968 and '69.

[Guy Berger]

I'm planning to pick up the Gustav Mahler bio because I've always been interested in whether he was actually a mainstream (bop) jazz guitarist before he became a big-time composer/conductor.

[sgcim]

Guy, I seem to have noticed a pattern on this board where you ridicule almost every one of my posts.

I usually manage to restrain myself from commenting on your posts, which I rarely agree with, but your knee jerk reactions are getting a little tiresome.

Consider yourself to be granted the privilege of being the very first person I've ever placed on my Ignore list, in my sixteen years of participating in forums on the net.

[7/4]

He may be a bit more fusion than most, but I'm pretty sure John McLaughlin is a jazz guitarist.

[A Lark Ascending]

Admirers of the McLaughlin book will be looking forward to Colin Harper's new one:

Let's hear it for eclecticism!

 

[sidewinder]

Not me.....

His Turtle Records booklet was pretty good though.

[robertoart]

Yep. Just because he's got a wierd Francophile accent these days doesn't mean he's not a Jazz Guitarist.

[sidewinder]

That accent is sort of like Brian Pern !