A bona fide guitar hero in his native England, Ray Russell bridges musical worlds on Now, More Than Ever, his potent debut on the Abstract Logix label. Russell's latest release comes seven years after his last studio recording, Goodbye, Svengali, the innovative guitarist's heartfelt tribute to the late Gil Evans. Featuring an all-star cast, including drummer Gary Husband and bassists Jimmy Johnson, Mo Foster and Anthony Jackson, this bold outing straddles that no man's land between rock power and unfettered jazz improvisation while conjuring up ethereal guitar synth soundscapes along the way. Now, More Than Ever stands as one of the more dynamic outings in Russell's extensive discography. Fans of John McLaughlin, Jeff Beck, Allan Holdsworth and Terje Rypdal will want to check out this latest triumph from one of fusion's great innovators. The creator of such groundbreaking and seminal jazz-rock works as 1968's Turn Circle and 1969's Dragon Hill, guitarist-composer Russell emerged on a fertile '60s London music scene as a ubiquitous session musician, along with fellow six-stringers John McLaughlin and Jimmy Page. Though Russell has an abundance of recordings to his credit, from small group sessions to soundtrack recordings for movies and TV, Now, More Than Ever stands as a primer for the wide stylistic swath that this inspired artist continues to cut with his trusty six-string in hand.
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