Larry Coryell – At The Village Gate (LP Transparent)

When it comes to jazz-rock fusion, guitarist Larry Coryell was an early, somewhat undervalued pioneer of the style at the time of his emergence in the 1960s and early ’70s. Coryell was a member of Gary Burton’s seminal fusion combo (presaging even Miles Davis’ In a Silent Way) and he recorded a considerable amount of solo fusion as well. This 1971 live recording shows Coryell at his most rock-oriented, perhaps in honor of the then-recent passing of guitar god Jimi Hendrix. Live at the Village Gate finds Coryell and his bass-and-drums combo stretching out on five tunes (including a Jack Bruce cover), merging the brutal crunch of rock with the dexterity of jazz.