Shakti

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Shakti was a fusion band, founded by the English guitarist John McLaughlin and the Indian violinist L. Shankar, with Zakir Hussain on tabla and Vikku Vinayakram on ghatam. The group began in 1973 under the name Turiyananda Sangit, a name from Sri Chinmoy that means something like the peak of delight in music. Later it changed this to Shakti, which means creative intelligence, beauty and power, because the members wanted a name that Western listeners could identify with. The group came together after the break-up of the first Mahavishnu Orchestra and toured extensively from 1975 to 1977. Albums from that time are A Handful of Beauty and Natural Elements from 1977.

Music and breakthrough

Shakti played acoustic fusion music that combined the Carnatic music of South India with jazz. Elements of Celtic folk music and classical music also played a role. The band also brought together the Hindustani music of the north and the Carnatic tradition of the south: Hussain came from the north, Shankar and Vikku from the south. Two performances at the Montreux Jazz Festival, in 1976 and 1977, are on McLaughlin's box set Montreux Concerts.

Influence

Between 1982 and 1984 the group came together for tours in India. In 1997 McLaughlin and Hussain formed Remember Shakti. In 2020 the band reunited and in 2023 This Moment appeared, the first album under that name in 46 years, which received a Grammy in 2024 for Best Global Music Album. Shakti showed that Indian and Western improvisation can find each other.

Listening

• 
  Joy · Shakti, 1975

Discography

Studio albums

• 1977A Handful of Beauty
• 1977Natural Elements
• 2023This Moment