JOHN MCLAUGHLIN — Devotion (aka Marbles) (review)

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN — Devotion (aka Marbles) album cover Album · 1970 · Jazz Related Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
js
“Devotion” is an odd one in the John McLaughlin discography, known as John’s ‘psychedelic rock’ album, there are a lot of things that happen on this LP that don’t show up on any later outings. Apparently controversial producer Alan Douglas had been hosting jam sessions with John, Jimi Hendrix, Larry Young, Billy Rich and Buddy Miles. When Jimi left us for another galaxy far away, the sessions continued without him. Eventually Alan made his own mix of the sessions without any input from McLaughlin, and the result was this album. John does not care for this album, especially Alan’s mixes. There is so much on here that is not typical for John; the way songs meld into each other, the psychedelic production, the double tracked guitar solos and the overall murky lack of precision. Production wise this album is the opposite of John’s later albums, but truth be told, this album sounds great, even if some of the music is somewhat simple by McLaughlin standards.

Most of these tracks are easy one and two chord modal jams, but both John and Larry Young play some great solos on these basic platforms. The best guitar solos go down on side one, with McLaughlin’s double tracked guitars often battling each other, or intertwining in complimentary ways. Larry should have been given more solo space, but he does come through big time on the bluesy “Siren”. Kudos to Larry also for his very spacey use of the B3 drawbars as he builds walls of tamboura like shifting hallucinogenic backgrounds. This is another place where Douglas’ skills shine as his production brings out the best in Larry’s unique technique. Another track worth mentioning is the last half of “Don’t Let the Dragon Eat Your Mother”, on which John’s mystical guitar figures sound like an outtake from “In a Silent Way”. On some of the more fusion leaning tracks, the bluesy Buddy Miles seems a bit out of his element. It would have been interesting to hear Billy Cobham or Tony Williams in his place. As a jazz album, many may find “Devotion” lacking in substance, but as a psychedelic rock album, it ranks with the best.
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