Al Di Meola - Anthology
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Free Music Notes for Anthology
Free Music Review: excellent compilation
Hit: 5 Stars
I've been waiting a long time for this. Al DiMeola has been one of my favorite guitarists since I heard him on the Return to Forever fusion masterpiece, Romantic Warrior. The songs on the new double CD appear in (mostly) chronological order, covering the years 1976-83. From the blazing "Land of the Midnight Sun" to the end of the second CD; the quintessential jazz guitar hero burns up the fretboard with mindboggling speed and precision. All of his Columbia material is represented here, with the exception of the classic Friday Night in San Francisco album with John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia.In the 2½ hours on these two CDs, DiMeola covers an enormous amount of musical ground. From the graceful power of the epic "Elegant Gypsy Suite," to the gentle "Bianca's Midnight Lullaby," to a rocker like "Cruisin'," he effortlessly switches between multiple styles--often within the same song. Looking for highlights? Check out the track list. There isn't a bad one in the bunch. One special note to fans: there are two previously unreleased live tracks at the end of each disc, for a total of almost 40 minutes of new music. The liner notes are excellent, and there are plenty of great photos also.
It's always great to see one of your favorite musicians release a compilation like this and have it done right. You can almost always find something wrong with them when you've been a fan for any length of time. There's always the song that should've been on there but wasn't, and vice versa. But you'll be hard pressed to find fault with this one. Whether you're a longtime fan or discovering Al DiMeola for the first time, you can't go wrong with Anthology.
Free Music Review: flawed, but an overall great disk
Hit: 5 Stars
I first heard Al's stuff in the early 80s (someone in our dorm had all his albums), so I already knew this anthology of his early work would have something worthwhile on it...
...but, the first "bonus" track on the first side is really poor live sound quality (I can understand why they put it on: it's an extraordinary live track). The next track is a little sketchy, too.
...and there are some other songs that I'd rather weren't on here at all: "Island Dreamer" and "Sequencer", which are both really cheezy sounding pop stuff in comparison to the other, amazing/catchy compositions.
Even though the jewel case was factory sealed (with hologram), one of the disks has a big scratch running all the way from the hole to the outside edge. When I unwrapped it, the disk was seated securely on the spindle, so it was scratched before it was sealed. There were also 2 fingerprints already on it (no, I'm very careful and they weren't mine). The disk plays perfectly, despite the superficial scratch.
If you don't have any of Al's early albums, this is the one to get! Most of it is great music that will never sound dated. It's now the favorite/most inspiring album in my collection.
Free Music Review: Extra Tracks Worth The Price
Hit: 5 Stars
I've been following Al's career since the late 70s (First heard his work on a submarine!).As you know from the cd description, this is compilation of his Columbia Records work from the late 70s to early 80s. The gem of this cd package in my opinion is the live version of 'The Wizard'. About 6 minutes into the song, Mingo Lewis (percussion) and Steve Gadd (drums) get into a percussion/drum solo. My question is this. Why wasn't this track released previously? What a great drum/percussion solo! Mingo Lewis and Steve Gadd are great! Steve Gadd was voted #3 in Modern Drummer's 25 best drummers of all time and this track really displays his talent.
On a personal note, I've met Al Di Meola a couple of times. He's a very down-to-earh person, not some stuck-up musician. I wish more people knew about his music. I'm on a crusade of sorts to get more people interested in his music. He focused on the music and not being famous.
Anyway, get this cd, especially if you are becoming interested in Al for the first time.
Free Music Review: Beautiful, a must have
Hit: 5 Stars
There is a Santa out there, finally a definitive collection. Mind you there are a couple of songs that I would have added but I'm not complaining. If you don't own anything from Al DiMeola. Please buy it. If you want to hear not one but many different styles, buy it. A very important guitarist of our time and an accomplished writer. Suite: Golden Dawn remains a favorite because of Jaco.Please do yourself a favor and get it. A very important piece of musicianship.
Free Music Review: Too fast
Hit: 5 Stars
No one who can play this fast can be human. This is a great collection of Al's early work. Although the jazz faithful will always complain about fusion, this album is an incredible jazz exploration. If you want to hear some incredible guitar playing, listen to this album. Although I tend to perfer the slur of Scofield and the amazing licks of Metheny, Al's percision on these tunes hooks me in everytime.
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