Spectrum

They call this album a classic of the "fusion" genre. I think labels were more important then - looking back, there was actually a lot of fusion around in the early 70's that wasn't called fusion. This album certainly defies simple description. The record has some amazing and unique music on it. It is very much "a moment in time": 4 musicians, all at the height of their game, feeding of each other to produce some razor sharp improvisation. It was also recorded with the minimum of fuss and over-dubbing - and with musicians like these, you don't need it! Alas, downsides of that moment in time are the 4 short tracks inter-dispersed amongst the gems that really are throw-away self-indulgences that littered so many albums of the early seventies. The sheer eclectic mix and quality of the main tracks is such however, that one can easily overlook and skip the 2 minute drum solo called "Anxiety", the electronic blips that are "Snoopy's search", or some nice phrases of piano music that fade out into nothing after 50 seconds or so. The album explodes with "Quadrant": four minutes of storming double kick pedal from Billy Cobham and driving bass (from Lee Sklar), whilst Tommy Bolin and Jan Hammer trade solos and duet on guitar and moog, respectively. If you drive with this on, watch out for speed cameras! "Spectrum" (title track) is a cooler jazzier number with flute and brass giving it a faintly Brazilian feel, with some nifty, subtle drumming from Cobham in the background. "Taurian Matador" gets back to the Moog sound from "Quadrant", but is a funkier groove. Next up, "Stratus" is a true work of genius. Shift forward a few minutes in this piece and you have driving repetitive bass thundering along, again with Bolin and Hammer calling and responding with sheer beauty. And just when you think it's all over, it keeps going, and Hammer grinds in low range synth before the final climax. "Le Lis" goes contrasts totally by going back into a slow, airy, summery sound with a flute sound doing the melody and Cobham giving a conga backing: probably the most serene track on the CD and, if your into 70's noise big time, this is one your partner will like. The final track on the original album (Red Baron) reminds me of Steely Dan, but really there are few parallels to the sounds on this record. I scored this with 5 despite the silly tracks. Given the silly short indulgent tracks on the album, I might be tempted to advice to buy a compilation (eg Billy Cobham Chronology or Anthology has all the good tracks I mentioned above, without the flotsam and jetsam). I scored this with 5 despite the silly tracks. And you also get to hear more of Cobhams work: a stunning technical master of the drums, but also a great composer and band leader. I have tried to describe this album: better get it though and see for yourself. If you are a rock or heavy jazz musician into "structured" improvisation, this will not disappoint.

It’s brilliant…

I have a Music on Vinyl pressing of this fantastic album but couldn’t resist getting this Rhino, Kevin Gray mastered version when it was released earlier in 2024. Sounds fantastic. There’s a snare hit on one of the tracks on side 2 which made me jump out of my seat. Oh, if you don’t know this album, have a listen to the track Stratus… when it kicks in, you’ll recognise it.

great drumming

This is an awesome cd with musicianship second to none

The much sampled Stratus alone makes this album worthwhile. But it also includes other proto funk classics, as well as more downbeat chilled pieces. Allround brilliant indelible proto-funk masterpiece!

Great album - bought it on the strength of an interview with Lee Sklar about his five favourite albums.

Best Jazz Rock album ever produced. I have an original vinyl from 1973 but now it’s sounding like it was recorded in a fish & Chip shop with all the crackles. This remastered vinyl sounds superb to my ears. Clearer and louder than before without sacrificing sound quality.

Billy Cobhamが1973年にリリースしたソロ1stアルバム。参加メンバーはTommy Bolin（Guiter）、Jan Hammer（Electric Piano,Piano [Acoustic Piano], Synthesizer [Moog]）、Leland Sklar（Bass [Fender Bass] ）、Ron Carter（Acoustic Bass）等です。本作品ではBilly Cobham、Tommy Bolin、Jan Hammer三人の熱いバトルが繰り広げられ特にBilly Cobhamの手数が多い超絶技巧ドラミングが堪能出来ます。本作品はTommy BolinがDeep Purpleに加入するきっかけを作った事（特に楽曲『Quadrant 4』での圧巻なギターソロ）でも有名でありそれだけ素晴らしい演奏だと言えます。4.0chのマルチ音源は基本フロントがドラムス、リアがギターおよびキーボードでたまに逆サイドに回る事もあり次にどのような展開になるのかワクワクさせられます。音の分離も良くマルチchと三人のバトルが相乗効果を生み出し一層素晴らしい作品に仕上がっていると思います。

I got to see Billy tour for the 30th anniversary of this album in a small club a few years ago. It was a great concert! I had a great time, despite the fact that the only original band member he could retrieve was bassist Lee Sklar. Even the guitarist did a reasonable job of covering for the late (incredible) Tommy Bolin. Let's face it: Tommy's phenomenal guitar work is a large part of why this album is a true flagship in the realm of '70s fusion. Even considering Tommy's work in Zephyr, The James Gang and Deep Purple (not to mention a few solo albums), THIS album is by far THE BEST TOMMY BOLIN GUITAR ALBUM EVER!!! When I first heard the opening song "Quadrant 4" during my early introductions to fusion, my first response was, "This is supposed to be a JAZZ album???" Quadrant 4 is one of the greatest instrumental rock guitar anthems ever...even if it's supposed to be jazz!!! Tommy's playing is incredible on 4 songs on this work. Even the title song and "Le Lis" which are more jazz tunes with brass and flute (and do not include Tommy) blend fabulously with the fusion songs, making this a wonderful album! Billy's friend from The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Jan Hammer is spectacular on the keyboards, and all band members do fantastic work. Now, let's get to Billy himself. A drummer friend of mine had the fortunate chance of seeing The Mahavishnu Orchestra back in the day. He said he wondered why they set up 2 drum kits for just 1 guy....but he didn't wonder for long!! He said "they NEEDED 2 drum kits to hold the guy down so he wouldn't float away, he was so unbelievable!! He sounded like there was at least 2 drummers going at the same time....one kit couldn't contain the dude!!" And when I saw him touring for the 30th anniversary of this album a few years ago, I can still heartily agree. They still need 2 drum sets to hold this dude down! And, Billy's drumming as well as his surprising gift at writing all the music on this album, is a great part of what makes this album sparkle as the MUST HAVE album it is!! Get this album for Billy's unbelievable drumming!!! Get this album for Tommy Bolin's phenomenal guitar work!! Get this album, because it is truly a flagship for instrumental rock and brilliant '70s jazz fusion!!!

For my money Spectrum is one of the best Jazz Fusion albums of all times and the 180 gram vinyl format allows it to shine even brighter. The price offered by Amazon was very reasonable and the delivery arrived promptly. All up this has been a good experience.

In this order i have managed to fill a number of spaces in my collection that have been open for decades now...SPECTRUM by BILLY COBHAM ( drummer ) is a unit that i have been trying to fill since CD's first came out ( a long time now ). Finally I have it and the music is killer if you happen to be into jazz that is. SPECTRUM truly covers the entire range of Jazz Drumming for me. That is why i have wanted it for so long. Billy Cobham has been around for a very long time as well making this disc well worth having. A very good addition for any library.

Todo bien.