Mike Elliott - Atrio 1974

This is the guitarist-leader of Natural Life accompanied by the rhythm section of the band, that is, bassist Willard Peterson Jr. and drummer Bill Berg.  Without the keyboardist I think the fusion was left aside and what we get here is some softer electric guitar standards and compositions.  Reprised or rather forshadowed (since this album came before the ST Natural Life posted yesterday) is the beautiful ballad Theme for Carla.  Incidentally the dummer, Bill Berg, is the highly talented artist responsible for the cover drawings of all these records (you'll see that they all are from the same guy).

One thing I used to love about jazz back when I was an all-out fan was the musicians' dedication to sheer and unalloyed beauty, along with an inclination towards virtuoso perfection.  These are really old-school values which rock exploded in its insistence on honesty thereby sacrificing technique.  But when Elliott plays each note of the melody so clearly with gorgeous backing chords in "Theme for Carla" you almost get that sense the beauty is so intense it's like looking at a beautiful landscape say Waimea Canyon on Kauai (in Hawai'i) in the brightest daylight without sunglasses, or perhaps, it's as if you were having a date with the stunning Dayana Mendoza and she's laughing at your every word.  But then the record skips and you think:  "damn you, tristan!?!"

The record closes out with a couple of solo guitar tracks. Again, the mastery of chords on "you don't know what love is"  is simply astounding, along with the delicacy of touch I would have been thrilled with this back when I was a jazz fan.  But after discovering progressive rock there was to be no going back for me.

(Theme for Carla)

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