It was at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1994 that Al Di Meola, Jean-Luc Ponty and Stanley Clarke played as a trio for the first time. Clarke and Di Meola had been part of Return to Forever and while they were comfortable in the familiarity of knowing each other, Ponty reached in and became a perfect fit. That language of understanding is seen to advantage on this portrait.

Stanley Clarke’s influence continues to be felt long past his 1970s glory days as a member of pianist Chick Corea’s flagship fusion group Return to Forever and as a solo artist whose School Days (Epic, 1976) remains required listening for any aspiring electric bassist. In the intervening years, despite the occasional high profile gig, he’s been more heavily involved in soundtrack work and solo albums that, while pleasant enough pop/jazz, have never quite lived up to the promise of those early years. What makes The Toys of Men so rewarding is the way that Clarke successfully brings back the characteristics that made him such a dominant force in the 1970s, tempered with, perhaps, an older and wiser viewpoint. In a year where another fusion legend, John McLaughlin, has hit the road with some of his most lyrical playing ever, Clarke’s return with an equally balanced form of fusion is just as welcome.

Billy Cobham began his recording sessions in March of 1981 for the London produced album Stratus with a short solo. Otherwise he allowed his newly formed band, Glassmenagerie, the liberty to evolve freely between the nonchalance of Rock and the grooviness of Jazz. "Stratus" arouses a new passion for the fusion music developed by Cobham and others in the 1970's. Next to Mike Stern, who has proven himself as an excellent jazz-rocker, Tim Landers, who joined up with Billy Cobham for the 80's tour, and stylistically undefined Gil Goldstein, the musical cast is completed by the Polish violinist and lyricon player Michal Urbaniak. For Cobham fans, Stratus truly is an essential album.

This was Billy Cobham's third release on GRP records. The other two were Warning and Power Play. Picture This is the better of the three.

Egberto Gismonti is world-renowned as a multi-instrumentalist and composer. He was profoundly influenced by Brazilian master Heitor Villa-Lobos, his works reflecting the musical diversity of Brazil. From the Amazon Indians' batuque to the Carioca samba and choro, through the Northeastern frevo, baião, and forró, Gismonti captures the true essence of the Brazilian soul in a way that is primitive, yet sophisticated, and reflects it through his personal vision, elaborated by years of classic training and literacy in a wealth of musical languages in which jazz plays a significant role.

This excellent release by Egberto Gismonti was conceived under the concept of a circus, an institution that has the ambivalent quality of being at the same time universal and regional; the "circense" tradition exists in almost all parts of the globe, but it is enriched by the smaller companies that keep struggling to survive in poorer setups, adding regional elements to the whole. It fits like a glove for the music of Gismonti, which also aims to enrich Brazilian musical tradition with elements of worldwide classical and popular acquisitions.

The last time Cat tried something different without Alun Davies the results were lackluster (Foreigner), but not so Izitso. The songs feature the same inventive, rhythmic melodies that Cat excels at, this time rendered on keyboards and synthesizers rather than guitar. The album feels more contemporary as a result, at times reminiscent of Steve Winwood (“Crazy”) and Gentle Giant (“Killin’ Time,” “Life”).

Brothers in Arms is the fifth studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, in 1985. The first half of the album is a development of their unique brand of arena rock which had evolved in their music since the 1980 album Making Movies, while the second half consists of more folk-influenced material. The whole album maintains the original Dire Straits' bluesy and laid back guitar-based sound whilst retaining a more lavish and bombastic production and overall sound. It is the band's best selling album. Brothers in Arms was one of the first albums to be directed at the CD market, being the first full digital recording (DDD) released, although not the first recording digitally recorded and mastered. It was also released on vinyl and cassette. Brothers in Arms was the first album to sell one million copies in the CD format and to outsell its LP version. A Rykodisc staffer would subsequently write, "[In 1985 we] were fighting to get our CDs manufactured because the entire worldwide manufacturing capacity was overwhelmed by demand for a single rock title (Dire Straits' Brothers in Arms)." It was remastered and released with the rest of the Dire Straits catalogue in 1996 for most of the world outside the U.S. and on September 19, 2000 in the United States. It was also released in Super Audio CD format on July 26, 2005 and DualDisc format on August 16, 2005, winning a Grammy for Best Surround Sound Album.

Wikipedia

The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin is a novel and a British sitcom starring Leonard Rossiter in the title role. Both book and TV series were written by David Nobbs, and the screenplay for the first series was adapted by Nobbs from the novel, though subplots in the novel were considered too dark or risqué for television and toned down or omitted, an example being the relationship between Perrin's daughter and his brother-in-law.

The original three series, all of the same name, were broadcast between 1976 and 1979; a fourth, The Legacy of Reginald Perrin, also written by Nobbs, followed in 1996.

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Enigmatic Ocean is Ponty's masterpiece and possibly the best Fusion CD ever. The line up is second to none; Holdsworth, Smith, Stuermer, Armstrong and Zavod all add to the amazing auditory tapestry that Jean-Luc has created. No single recording has ever combined Classical composition, Jazz improvisation, Funky bass, and delivered it in a high energy rock context like Enigmatic Ocean has. Every tune on this disc is a highlight.