A Roland GR-1 guitar synth adds color and texture.
Across the Universe, appropriately, observes The Beatles’ timeless harmonies and interlocking melodic figures through the syncopated prism of tango, flamenco, bossa nova, and merengue, as Di Meola delivers precision alternate picking on two signature models-a Conde Hermanos nylon-string and an Ovation steel-string-as well as a 1948 Martin D-18. After all, that band, along with the Ventures and Elvis, first dropped the guitar bug into Albert Laurence Di Meola’s gifted hands in the early 1960s, in the suburban enclave of Bergenfield, New Jersey.Īfter so many years in exotic compositional locales, though, Di Meola was never going to return home the same player who left.
2-a thematic follow-up to 2013’s Fab Four tribute, All Your Life (A Tribute to The Beatles)-is the logical journey home. If Di Meola has shown a lifetime bent for a certain musical wanderlust, his latest album, the largely acoustic Beatles homage Across the Universe, The Beatles Vol. (Di Meola is suitably thrilled with an upcoming release of a new collection of previously unreleased live material from that historic run of concerts. More recently, Di Meola has explored fresh compositional ports of call on albums such as 2018’s Opus.įor many fans, the most storied crossing of this journey remains Di Meola’s integral role as the virtuosic bridge between jazz, flamenco, and Eastern music in perhaps the mightiest acoustic trio ever to brandish steel: Di Meola and his equally storied compatriots John McLaughlin and the late, great Paco de Lucía, on the legendary double album Friday Night in San Francisco. The travelogue that preceded it, after all, carried the New Jersey native across a universe of sound and syncopation-from pioneering jazz fusion greats Return to Forever to the Latin-inspired solo works Splendido Hotel, Casino, and Elegant Gypsy from the North African–informed Morocco Fantasia to the sultry embrace of Argentine tango master Astor Piazzolla on 2005’s nylon-string tour de force, Diabolic Inventions and Seduction for Solo Guitar. So we're asking you to give just $1 (or whatever you can afford) right now.įrom the November/December 2020 issue of Acoustic Guitar | By James RotondiĪfter nearly 50 years exploring the most remote destinations on the musical map, Al Di Meola’s homecoming to formative influences The Beatles was always going to involve new languages and fresh perspectives. Hey, fellow guitarist! Did you know 99.9% of visitors to this site will scroll past this message without making a contribution? Many plan to pledge later, but then forget.
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