John McLaughlin’s touring career ended three years ago, but before he packed it in, he recorded a final live album, Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2022. He feels it’s special because he felt a familiar sensation while stepping on stage. “You’ve got nerves – but isn’t it beautiful to have nerves?” he asks Guitar World.
For McLaughlin, Montreux is different.
“I love it because it’s about the diversity of music,” he says. “It’s all the best bands of all the different genres. There’s great music everywhere. That’s what I like.”
McLaughlin is a jazzer at heart, and while that’s not always commercially viable, it led to magic at Montreux.
What’s the story behind Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2022?
“Montreux is a very significant place for me because I started going there in 1971 – my whole life, basically. It’s one of the most beautiful places to be. It started off in the late Sixties, and by the time I got there, it was already booming. From the outset, they wanted not just jazz, but diversity in music.
“Anyway, I have this band called the 4th Dimension, and when I was on that tour in 2022, I asked Jany McPherson to play with us. I said, ‘I’ve got to have this girl in the band,’ and she almost brought [a fifth] dimension to the recording.”
They say some nights on tour are more magical than others. Was that the case with this recording?
“It’s outstanding. It was one of those great nights. Everybody was on, which is not always the case. Everybody’s got blah nights, or stuff goes wrong, where you break a string, or something happens. But from the word go, it was a great night.”
What does performing live bring out in you as a guitarist, as opposed to playing in the studio?
“It’s different. In the studio, you do another take or however many takes, but generally speaking, you play too many times. It’s going to go downhill. I would say, in the studio, it’s in the first three takes. But in a way, you’re more relaxed in the studio compared to walking onstage.”
Does that make you a better player?
“Well, you walk onstage and the nerves are there – but they’re good nerves! There’s energy coming from the audience. They’re all saying, ‘What’s he going to do?’ And I’m the same when I’m in the audience, you know? I think, ‘What are they going to give me?’”
It’s a give-and-take between performer and spectator.
“All that energy coming off the audience, this expectation hits all the musicians. If we didn’t have nerves, we’d just be robots walking on stage. And that’s terrible, you know? We’re human, and this passion comes when you’re in front of the audience, so you go with it.
“Whatever happens, you have to trust yourself and whoever you have around you. You’re counting on each other, and that’s a great feeling. And if somebody screws up, there’s nothing you can do. [Laughs]”
The 4th Dimension seem to have great chemistry. Did you find Jany easy to lock in with?
“It was the first time she was on tour with us, so we were all paying attention, but she changed my direction of what tunes to play and she was singing melody in unison with my guitar. It sounded so cool; it was a beautiful sound, the two voices – her voice and my guitar – coming together. It’s so rich and soulful.”
You’ve been using PRS guitars lately. What gear did you pair with those on this recording?
“It was very simple. I was using a Zen preamp and a chorus pedal. I was just talking to Paul Reed Smith – and I don’t know if I should be telling you this – but he’s made a new guitar that I call ‘The Yellow Guitar,’ and it’s like a revolution.
“I can’t say much more about it, but he was also on the phone with Eric Johnson, one of my favorite guitar players, and he’s got one too. We were both going on about it. But I didn’t have one on the live record; I just had my regular PRS with the Zen and a little chorus pedal. That’s it.”
You’ve been retired from touring since this performance, so does it hold special meaning to you now?
“Yes! It was one of those nights. You don’t always record those special nights, but there was a vibe going on, and the audience felt it. There’s nothing you can do to organize this. Either it happens or it doesn’t. But it happened, we recorded it, and it’s outstanding.”
The way the music was played that night, and that thing happened, which was the spirit, and the love – whatever it was, something happened
That’s saying something, considering how many records you’ve made.
“I’ve made a lot of records, man. [Laughs] But it was a beautiful night. I’ve recorded before, you know, but the way the music was played that night, and that thing happened, which was the spirit, and the love – whatever it was, something happened.
“There’s a certain point where the life and love that’s inside the notes, if I can put it like that, become transformed, and it’s not just notes anymore. It’s like there’s a collective of love and mutual affection embedded in the music. That doesn’t happen every night – or with every band – but it did that night.”
- Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2022 is out now via earMUSIC
- This article first appeared in Guitar World. Subscribe and save.
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