AL DI MEOLA plays The Coach House Apr. 24; Photo Francesco Cabras
Jazz-fusion guitarist and composer Al Di Meola will play a sold-out show at The Coach House on Friday, April 24th as part of the west-coast leg of his Elegant Gypsy and More Tour.
The Elegant Gypsy and More Tour has Di Meola and the band, which includes keyboardist Philippe Saisse, bassist Armand Sabel Lecco, percussionist Gumbi Ortiz, and drummer Joel Taylor, reaching back in the catalog. Songs from Elegant Gypsy, Casino (1978) and Splendido Hotel (1980) have been featured, as well as a variety of covers.
Di Meola is no stranger to Southern California with a career spanning more than four decades, the guitar virtuoso has traveled the world many times over, beginning with a stint in Chick Corea’s band, Return to Forever, when he was 19 years old. One of the songs from their 1975 collaboration, No Mystery, took home a Grammy for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, and put Di Meloa on the map as a guitarist to watch.
Following his with Corea, Di Meola went solo with Land of the Midnight Sun (1976) and Elegant Gypsy (1977), which have been called “some of the finest jazz fusion guitar-based recordings ever,” by critic Greg Prato.
In addition to his 20-plus solo albums, Di Meola’s use of Flamenco, Tango, Middle Eastern, Brazillian, and African music, as well as his legendary speed (he is number nine on Guitar World’s list of fastest guitar players of all time) have both led to guest spots on tracks by some of the world’s biggest artists. He has recorded with Paul Simon, Dave Matthews, Carlos Santana, Steve Winwood, Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder, Les Paul, and Jimmy Page, and that’s just scratching the surface.
Di Meola’s more recent projects include 2013’s Abbey-Road-recorded, passion project, All Your Life. The album is an exploration of 14 Beatles songs, using only his own acoustic guitar playing. Di Meola has credited the Fab Four with being a major factor in getting him to pick up a guitar, which ultimately inspired him to put his own twist on some of their most famous tracks. He also has a new album, Elysium, due out some time this year.