Nov 7, 2010

Miroslav Vitous: "Magical Shepherd"

Okay, first of all, this shit is on the verge of being wack, but only in the most deliciously funky, '70's-tastic sort of way.  Miroslav is a former alum of both Miles Davis and Weather Report, a Czech bass-playing child prodigy who never received the enormous recognition that other fusion bassists have (Jaco, Stanley Clarke, et al).  Yet Miroslav was truly an innovator on both the upright and electric bass, and on this album, he dives headfirst into some seriously out-there funk-fusion.  His right-hand man on this project is no less than Herbie Hancock himself, at the height of his mindbending synthesized powers, and so this whole album plays like a more acid-drenched, less Afro-centric version of Herbie's efforts from this period (1976).  The x-factor on this record is the addition of two female vocalists, a reminder of what decade this was recorded in.  Somehow, though, the mix of waaay out vocals, spaced keyboards, and STOMPING funk breakbeats (courtesy of James Gadson and Jack DeJohnette) coalesces into a magnificent whole--one that certainly showcases the excesses of '70's music, yet your head will be bouncing so hard to this shit you won't care. Dig.

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