Weather Report

Tale Spinnin' sets up a hypnotic groove, loose and funky with more than a touch of
Afro-Latin in the rhythm section and engaging melodic detail on top. The compressed lyric
intensity and experiments in acoustic/electric orchestration which lent Weather Report's
recent Mysterious Traveller its intriguing surface and structural intricacy are largely
missing, and only Josef Zawinul's "Man in the Green Shirt" and "Five Short Stories"... More >

I used to be cowed by these guys, but all they are is Jeff Beck with liner notes. I mean, wouldn't you know that the finest fusion band in the land would be altogether too damn fine? Yoked to these tunes and concepts, their solidest rhythm section to date--Alphonso Johnson on bass and Ndugu on (trap) drums--only underscores their subservience to technique. (Grade: B-)