Shakti | |
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Background information | |
Also known as | Turiyananda Sangit (in the early days) |
Genres | |
Years active | 1973–1978; 2020–present |
Labels | |
Spinoffs | Remember Shakti |
Members | |
Past members |
Shakti is a fusion band formed by English guitarist John McLaughlin, Indian violin player L. Shankar, percussionists Zakir Hussain (on tabla) and T. H. "Vikku" Vinayakram (on Ghatam) [1] in 1973, [2] initially under the stage name "Turiyananda Sangit" [3] (which translates in English to "The pinnacle delight in music" [4] ). The band played acoustic fusion music which combined Indian music with elements of jazz. The band's name means, in English, "creative intelligence, beauty, and power." [5]
In addition to fusing American and Indian music, Shakti also represented a fusion of the Hindustani and Carnatic music traditions, since Hussain is from the north region of India while the other Indian members are from the South. [6]
The group came together in 1973, after the dissolution of the first incarnation of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, and toured fairly extensively during the period 1975-1977; it made only sporadic appearances (with personnel changes) thereafter.
After 1977, the albums which L. Shankar recorded with Z. Hussain and T. H. "Vikku" Vinayakram stayed close to the music made popular by Shakti.
Two concerts at the Montreux Jazz Festival (July 6, 1976 and July 8, 1977) are included among the 17 CDs of the box set Montreux Concerts by John McLaughlin. [7]
In 1997, McLaughlin and Hussain put together another band with the same concept, called Remember Shakti, including V. Selvaganesh (son of T. H. "Vikku" Vinayakram ), mandolin player U. Shrinivas and eventually Shankar Mahadevan.
The band reformed in 2020, [8] and released their first album as Shakti in 46 years, This Moment , on 23 June 2023. [9] The album will be supported by a world tour including India, Europe, and United States under the name Shakti50. [2]
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [10] | US Jazz [10] | SWE [11] | ||||||||||||
Shakti with John McLaughlin | 194 | 37 | — | |||||||||||
A Handful of Beauty |
| 168 | 32 | 42 | ||||||||||
Natural Elements |
| — | — | — | ||||||||||
This Moment |
| — | — | — | ||||||||||
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
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Remember Shakti is a quintet which combines elements of traditional Indian music with elements of jazz. The band consists of English guitarist John McLaughlin, and Zakir Hussain (tabla), U. Srinivas (deceased) (mandolin), Shankar Mahadevan (vocals), and V. Selvaganesh, who are of Indian descent. The band's name is derived from John Mclaughlin's acoustic Indian fusion band Shakti which was active in the 1970s. McLaughlin and Hussain were also members of that band, along with violinist L. Shankar and percussionists T.H. "Vikku" Vinayakram and R. Raghavan. The word Shakti translates in Sanskrit to "power" or "goddess of power".
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Natural Elements is a studio album by the world fusion band Shakti. It was released in 1977 on CBS Records.
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Remember Shakti is a live album by the world fusion band Remember Shakti recorded in England over four nights, and released in 1999 on the Verve label. The reformed group features original members John McLaughlin (guitar), Zakir Hussain (tabla) and Vikku Vinayakram (ghatam), who are joined by Hariprasad Chaurasia on the bansuri. The album reached number 14 in the Billboard Top Jazz albums chart.
Remember Shakti – The Believer is a live album by the world fusion band Remember Shakti, that was released in 2000 on the Verve label. The live set features John McLaughlin on guitar, electric mandolinist U. Srinivas, Vikku Selvaganesh playing ghatam, and tabla player Zakir Hussain. The album peaked number 20 in the Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart.
Remember Shakti – Saturday Night in Bombay is a live album by the world fusion band Remember Shakti released in November 2001 on the Verve label. This concert features John McLaughlin on guitar, U. Srinivas on electric mandolin, Vikku Selvaganesh on ghatam, kanjira and mridangam, Zakir Hussain on tabla and a number of guest musicians, including vocalist Shankar Mahadeven, slide guitarist Debashish and drummer Sivamani.
This Moment is the third studio album by world fusion band Shakti, released on 23 June 2023. It is the first release under the Shakti name in 46 years following Natural Elements (1977), and features founding member, guitarist John McLaughlin alongside percussionist Zakir Hussain, vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan and percussionist Selvaganesh Vinayakram. The band will embark on their first tour in 18 years in support of the record. They won a Grammy for Best Global Music Album in 2024 for "This Moment".