A spellbound audience at the Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith loudly cheered in standing ovation, as internationally renowned guitar wizard John McLaughlin and tabla maestro Zakir Hussain took the stage, marking the 50th anniversary of Indo-jazz band, Shakti. One even shouted “Wah Taj” recalling an old television advertisement promoting a popular tea brand, where Hussain modelled.
In 1973, McLaughlin had stunned the music world when he left his hugely successful Mahavishnu Orchestra. Later, with Zakir Hussain, violinist L Shankar, and ghatam player T H “Vikku” Vinayakram, he started the band Shakti. Percussionist V Selvaganesh (T H Vinayakram’s son), celebrated singer and composer Shankar Mahadevan and violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan have now joined McLaughlin and Hussain’s fusion band, as they tour across the world.
Shakti recently released ‘This Moment’, its first studio album in 45 years. According to the official website: a work of immense depth and radiant optimism, the album offers a set of new compositions and performances that burn with a rare intensity born out of passion.
The band is therefore celebrating their latest recording (and compositions), by performing in Europe, and extensively in the US as they just wrapped up their tour in London after two magical performances on 27 and 28 June.
Drummer and pianist Gary Husband, who played the opening set with guitarist Nguyên Lê, was reportedly also present among the audience in 1976 (aged 16), when the band had performed their first gig at the same Hammersmith Apollo. He therefore joined the rest of London to bid Shakti farewell at their last show, as the supergroup enthralled audience with Mahadevan’s magical ‘Bending the Rules’ and an impressive 'percussion battle’ between Selvaganesh and Hussain.
On Wednesday 28 June, present were many second and third generation British Indians, along with high-profile guests, such as sitarist Anoushka Shankar, the High Commissioner of India to the UK, HE Vikram Doraiswami and his wife.
Dr Atrayee Banerjee, a singer herself and part of The Tagoreans, performed at The Bhavan on 2 July. She told Asian Voice, “To watch the legends at their final show in London, especially Ustad Zakir Hussain and John McLaughlin perform live, was a privilege. And then to witness music transcending boundaries through the fusion between Indian classical music and jazz was phenomenal indeed! I was completely fascinated by Ganesh Rajagopalan’s passages!”
Hussain and Mahadevan were also spotted at 10 Downing Street, just before their performance, at a reception hosted by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, to celebrate the UK-India Week (see p1).
