I don't know a lot about Szabo's discography, but I found Nightflight to be very engaging. Everything about it screams the era from which it came. Had I not known better, I would have presumed the album to have come from France, as the sound here isn't that far removed from some of the artists you'd find on the Cobra label for example. In some ways, it's a bit too pre-packaged. The occasional strings and disco beat only underscore this point. On other tracks, one will hear a heavy funky racket in the background, with wah-wah guitars and tribal rhythms. Enter in Gabor Szabo, who then proceeds to jam over what appears to be backing tracks. His tone is that of a lightly amplified electric guitar, and sporadic acoustic guitar. Some of his solos are sublime, while others don't belong at all, adding to the strange vibe. And Szabo sings too - at least I think it's him - in the grand ill advised tradition of other jazz fusion artists like Tony Williams and Al Di Meola. Still, the compositions are well written, and the melodies stick out in a good way. I can live without 'Funny Face' and 'Theme for Gabor', but the other five tracks are super.
Overall the album captures the optimism of mid to late 70s Paris. Richard Pinhas would later also celebrate jet-setting across the pond, except his vision turned Szabo's upside down into a nightmarish fiery inferno.
Ownership: LP: 1976 Mercury. Single sleeve. The inner sleeve has an advert for the Mercury stock of artists, in addition to a rant on the "dangers of home taping". Part of a collection buy (2019).
12/22/19 (first listen / review / new entry)
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