Born in Yorkshire, England, in 1942, John McLaughlin began playing the piano at the age of nine, though his mother was a violinist. Two years later, he turned his attention to the guitar that he taught himself to play.
At the end of the 1950’s, he played for a while with banjo-player Pete Deuchar and his Professors of Ragtime, then decided to move to London. In the early ’sixties, the path of the young John McLaughlin crossed that of Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames, then he played alongside Alexis Korner. He then spent six months in Germany, in a band formed by Gunter Hampel.
Things began to speed up. On the advice of Dave Holland, Tony Williams, who had just left Miles Davis to found Lifetime, called on McLaughlin’s services. With organ-player Larry Young, they recorded “Emergency” in 1969, followed by “Turn It Over” in 1970. When Lifetime split up, John McLaughlin went on to work with Miles Davis, collaborating with him on the composition of numerous masterpieces. McLaughlin made recordings with Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Miles and Dave Holland. In 1985, he got back together with Miles Davis in the studio for “You’re Under Arrest”.
In 1993, John McLaughlin turned over a new leaf, deciding to return to his first love for the trio with Hammond organ. He got together with Dennis Chambers, funk drummer and a new genius spotted by Miles Davis, a very young prodigy by the name of Joey De Francesco. Concerts followed pretty much everywhere in Europe, an eminently spectacular formula : The Free Spirits trio on stage : Tokyo Live (1994).
1996 started out for John McLaughlin with the round-up album, “The Promise”, with its prestigious cast of musicians including Jeff Beck, Michael Brecker, David Sanborn, Sting. Then in 1997, with a new band called The Heart of Things, John McLaughlin pursued his quest for excellence.
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of India’s independence in 1997, Shakti got back together, 20 years later, under the name Remember SHAKTI. John McLaughlin recorded a new live album, “Remember SHAKTI”, with Zakir Hussain, T.H. Vikku Vinayakram and Hariprasad Chaurasia, the outcome of several recitals in Great Britain. For many fans, Shakti remains the Golden Age of John McLaughlin.
2003, “Thieves & Poets” was commissioned from McLaughlin by Jürgen Nimbler and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie with whom he had made a European tour. Finally, in 2006, McLaughlin again made a clear commitment to the energy, spirit and formal sophistication of the best recordings made by the Mahavishnu Orchestra.
He will perform in 2008 in the prestigious Salle Garnier at the Monte- Carlo Opera-house, designed by the famous architect, Charles Garnier (1825-1898) in 1878.
John McLaughlin & the 4th Dimension
John McLaughlin - Guitar
Gary Husband - Keyboard
Hadrien Feraud - Bass
Mark Mondesir - Percussion
Salle Garnier at 8.30 p.m.
Price : 50 €
Dress code : correct attire obligatory.
Information / Reservations : +377 98 06 36 36
