Tony Williams
Once in a Lifetime
Play Once in a Lifetime
| Song | Lyrics | Save | Buy |
|---|
-
AMG Review of Once in a Lifetime
Scott Yanow
All Music GuideTony Williams Lifetime, a powerful trio that the drummer formed with guitarist John McLaughlin (who was still a relative unknown at the time) and organist Larry Young, was one of the top fusion groups of 1969-1970. This double-LP has all of the music from the band's first (and best) record, Emergency!, plus five of the nine selections from Turn It Over, a quartet session that adds bassist Jack Bruce to one of the numbers. The recording quality is purposely primitive, with plenty of feedback and overmodulations that often make the ensembles sound a bit distorted. The music is quite exciting and often ferocious, a far cry from the watered-down pop fuzak of the 1990s. These explosive performances are rock-oriented but contain the sophistication of jazz improvisations. Although Lifetime did not catch on, its music still communicates and shows off the potential of fusion.
 "Once in a Lifetime")
