Paco de Lucia, Al Di Meola & John McLaughlin The Guitar Trio 180g LP (Vinyl)

Never Before on VINYL!!!
180g Vinyl Pressed in Germany with Deluxe Packaging!

The Guitar Trio is a reunion album by celebrated acoustic guitar virtuosos Paco de Lucia, Al Di Meola and John McLaughlin, released in 1996 after 13 years without playing together. This 1996 release has three originals a piece from McLaughlin and Di Meola, two by de Lucia and a McLaughlin-Di Meola deut on "Manha de Carnaval." The recording of this album was followed by a triumphant world tour.

Paco de Lucia was a spanish flamenco guitarist, composer and producer. A leading proponent of the New Flamenco style, he helped legitimize flamenco among the establishment in Spain, and was one of the first flamenco guitarists to have successfully crossed over into other genres of music such as classical and jazz. De Lucia was noted for his fast and fluent fingerstyle runs. His collaborations with guitarists John McLaughlin and Al Di Meola saw him gain wider popularity outside his native Spain.

Al Di Meola is an acclaimed jazz fusion and Latin jazz guitarist, composer, and record producer. With a musical career that has spanned more than three decades, he has become respected as one of the most influential guitarists in jazz to date. Albums such as Friday Night In San Francisco have earned him both artistic and commercial success with a solid fan base throughout the world. A prolific composer and prodigious six-string talent, Di Meola has amassed over 20 albums as a leader while collaborating on a dozen or so others.

John McLaughlin is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer. His music includes many genres of jazz and rock, which he coupled with an interest in Indian classical music to become one of the pioneering figures in fusion. In 2010, guitarist Jeff Beck called him "the best guitarist alive." In 2003, McLaughlin was ranked 49th in Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time." After contributing to several key British groups of the early sixties and making his first solo record, he moved to the US where he played with Tony Williams' group Lifetime and then with Miles Davis on his landmark electric-jazz fusion albums: In A Silent Way, Bitches Brew, A Tribute To Jack Johnson and On The Corner.

"Guitar Trio is an excellent collaborative effort from three of the finest jazz guitarists of the post-rock & roll era: Paco de Lucía, John McLaughlin, and Al di Meola. Throughout the record, the trio doesn't just showcase their instrumental skills; they demonstrate their musicality. This is sympathetic, emotional musicianship, where each musician complements each other instead of trying to out-do the other. For jazz guitar fans, it rarely gets more exciting than Guitar Trio." - Leo Stanley, allmusic.com

"Paco De Lucia, Al Di Meola, and John McLaughlin once again demonstrate extraordinary virtuosity, accelerated runs tumbling over one another until identities blur. Repeated listening, however, starts to focus on the subtle differences in nuance, especially in the compositions." -Adam Rains, amazon.com

Recorded on 180g heavy-weight vinyl to ensure quality sound, packaged in gatefold cover, and covered by premium protective vinyl outer sleeve.

The “Play 33 1/3 LP Series” features masterpiece albums released in the '90s converted for the first time world-wide to analog Long Playing record. The album cover and package created after months of graphic work and processes by hand enhanced its excellence and to ensure the record’s superb sound quality, the German MMP, who undertook the record production of EMI Germany and Universal, utilized a heavy weight 180g vinyl LP to contain the sound. Khiov who was in charge of the planning and production of many LP miniature series took charge of the album cover production spending 6 months to create a masterpiece.

This project was highly scrutinized passing rigid testing at the factory in Germany. Even the performers themselves had not been able to put their hands on the LP version of their own albums as their home country had not produced them.  The LPs produced by this project certainly have become must-have items by LP lovers all around the world.

In the age where faster and more convenient is thought to be better, the increase in demand for the retro vinyl LP worldwide is clearly attributed to the satisfaction from the sound offered by analog products impossible to be replicated by CD and digital products and the delight of touching, feeling, and possessing this masterpiece-like large artwork. Furthermore, LP records have both rarity and history that increase their value over time and serve as an attractive factor for collectors.

Features:
• Play 33 1/3 Series
• 180g heavyweight vinyl
• Gatefold jacket
• 4-page booklet
• Black poly-lined inner sleeve
• Project designed & sleeve made by Khiov
• Bob Ludwig - mastering engineer
• Pressed at Pallas in Germany
• Lacquer cutting by SST (Schallplatten Schneid Technik) Bruggemann GmbH in Germany

Musicians:
Paco De Lucia, guitars
Al Di Meola, guitars
John McLaughlin, guitars

Selections:
Side 1:
1. La Estiba
2. Beyond the Mirage
3. Midsummer Night
4. Manha de Carnaval
5. Letter from India
Side 2:
1. Espiritu
2. Le Monastere dans les Montagnes
3. Azzura
4. Cardeosa