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Notes on contributors
John McLaughlin (b. 1942) is an English guitarist, bandleader and prolific composer, incorporating many jazz genres uniquely coupled with elements of rock, Indian and Western classical music, flamenco and blues. Profoundly influenced by Indian music, John is a leading pioneer of the fusion genre, incorporating great speed of playing, technical precision and harmonic sophistication, along with exotic scales and unconventional time signatures. Following a notable early career on England’s 1960s R&B scene, John then played in the USA with Tony Williams Lifetime and the legendary trumpeter Miles Davis. His Mahavishnu Orchestra (1971–75) performed a technically virtuosic, complex style of music fusing electric jazz and rock with Indian influences. A Grammy winner who’s won multiple awards over many years, guitarist Jeff Beck has called John ‘the best guitarist alive’. John from time to time resurrects his legendary World Music group Shakti, and his latest band The 4th Dimension is critically acclaimed as one of his most successful bands ever. A major influence on a number of prominent musicians, according to jazz guitarist Pat Metheny, McLaughlin has changed the evolution of the guitar during several of his periods of playing, and he continues to be a boldly innovative player and composer to this day.
Self & Society Editor Richard House with John in Edinburgh, July 2016.
Richard House and David Kalisch are co-editors of Self & Society: An International Journal for Humanistic Psychology.