But that doesn't mean they were the best, or the only band of their type around; they were simply the most consistent and the most durable. In my opinion it was another ex Davis sideman, guitar player John McLaughlin, and his Mahavishnu Orchestra, who was the cream of the crop of all the new Jazz bands forming up in the early 1970s.

Unfortunately he was never able to hold a band together for long enough for them to really establish themselves. Each incarnation of the Mahavishnu Orchestra might be superb, but if there is a gap of more then two years between recordings you might as well have to start from zero again as far as the public is concerned. According to information in the liner notes to the Eagle Rock Entertainment release, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Live At Montreux 1984/1974 McLaughlin disbanded the group shortly after that 1974 concert and didn't reform it until 1983 with a completely new line up.

Live At Montreux 1984/1974 is a two-disc DVD visual and audio record of those two extremely different concerts. (Unfortunately, only two tracks of video from the 1974 concert exist so four of the cuts are audio only) The major difference between the two concerts is the make up of the band. In 1974 they were far more like a real orchestra with Jean-Luc Ponty heading up a four person string section; there was also a flute and a horn player, drums, keyboard, and of course McLaughlin on guitar.

The line up in 1984 was far more along the typical jazz combo formation with keyboards, saxophone, bass, drums, and McLaughlin on guitar. The other big difference was the technology available in 1984 probably hadn't even been dreamed of when they were filming the first concert. A bank of four keyboards has replaced the organ used in the earlier concert and McLaughlin has a Synclavier 2 device (a rectangle coming off the body of the guitar) attached to one of his guitars that turns it into a keyboard. A far cry from a wah-wah pedal and whatever else was available for guitar players in the early seventies.

The picture of McLaughlin above might have been taken at the 1974 concert, as that's the guitar he was playing. Double-necked guitars were all the rage in the seventies among rock guitar heroes, but I'm sure none of them could do what McLaughlin could do on his. Then again, I don't think there are many guitar players alive who can do what he can do on any guitar.