Shakti/John McLaughlin-Zakir Hussain-Shankar Mahadevan-Selvaganesh -G.Rajagopalan: This Moment

Listen/Preorder : linktr.ee/shak...
Label: Abstract Logix
Release Date: June 23, 2023
John McLaughlin (Guitar, Guitar Synth), Zakir Hussain (Tabla, Chanda, Madal, Konokol), Shankar Mahadevan (Vocals), Selvaganesh Vinayakram (Kanjeera, Mridangam, Konokol), Ganesh Rajagopalan (Violin)
As a cornerstone of what is now called World Music, the vision and virtuosity of Shakti has inspired generations of musicians from around the world to explore sonic hybrids once thought impossible. Born of the musical and spiritual brotherhood shared by the revolutionary British guitarist and bandleader John McLaughlin and master Indian percussionist Zakir Hussain, Shakti’s soulful, organic intermingling of Eastern and Western musical traditions has proven transformative for both the band’s members and its listeners.
Fifty years after the informal conversations and jam sessions that sparked the band into existence, their music continues to resonate and evolve. This Moment - Shakti’s first new studio album in more than 45 years, will be released on CD and vinyl LP via Abstract Logix on June 30, 2023. A work of immense depth and radiant optimism, This Moment offers a set of new compositions and performances that burn with a rare intensity born out of passion. With McLaughlin (guitar, guitar synth) and Hussain (tabla) joined by vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan, and percussionist Selvaganesh Vinayakram, the Shakti of now is a powerfully dynamic collective, defined by deft interplay, dazzling unison passages, extraordinarily dexterous improvisations, and the ability to draw from a vast well of global traditions and, miraculously, put them in conversation with one another.
Despite the large gap in their studio discography, Shakti has persisted intermittently over the years as a live proposition, releasing several concert recordings. “Shakti is very much a ‘live’ band,” explains McLaughlin. “A part of the problem with making a studio recording has always been the fact that we live on different continents, and we all follow our individual careers - in addition to working together in Shakti. This Moment is the result of me calling everyone in the fall of 2021 and persuading them to use today’s recording technology to realize it.” Recorded and mixed in the U.S., Monaco, India, and Great Britain, This Moment is nevertheless cohesive, bound by the deeply held bond shared by the players - a bond that is audibly apparent across the album’s eight tracks.
The compositions making up This Moment each pass through a series of connected movements, highlighting different vocal and instrumental sub-groups within Shakti while transitioning between taut thematic statements, riveting solos from McLaughlin and Rajagopalan, invigorating rhythmic shifts, and soaring vocal passages by Mahadevan. The increased use of vocals - both sung and konokol (a Southern Indian tradition of spoken percussion) - gives today’s Shakti a new degree of warmth, humanity, and universality. McLaughlin’s contributions are remarkable in their ability to reconcile the great Ragas of North and South India with a chromaticism born of jazz and the blues, and the speed and precision of his articulation remains exhilarating. The engine room of Hussain and Vinayakram (son of original Shakti ghatam player T.H. “Vikku” Vinayakram) gives space to allow passages to breathe and resound, while equally capable of fomenting a roiling, galloping underpinning that push the soloists to increasingly ecstatic heights.
For founders McLaughlin and Hussain, Shakti’s astonishing longevity - along with a legacy that has affected musicians and audiences around the world - is met with humility and gratitude. But while recognizing the group’s past achievements, Shakti continues to evolve, as demonstrated so compellingly on This Moment. “You could say that we have returned to elements of an older Shakti sound by bringing back the violin,” reflects Hussain. “In some ways it completes the circle. But the musical mindset that the artists in the group bring to the table reveals many layers of creative thought that we in our initial incarnation did not have the time nor the means to explore. And now, the decades of individual music experiences we all have had poured into this gathering's offering has resulted in an extraordinary depth to the sound and interaction of this band.”
“I have been working and playing with Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain for 50 years, and with Shankar Mahadevan for 20 years,” McLaughlin concludes. “I can say categorically that their influence on me as a musician and human being is without equal. It’s really a thrill, and I’m delighted to be part of this marvelous tradition of the Shakti group.”

[@kartikaybesoya]

Who’s here after Grammy?

[@aneeshacarollakra1281]

Just came after seeing the news

[@jananivenkatesh4790]

Haha 🙌🏾

[@MallikD]

Me 😂

[@roving_harman]

Where’s full album?

[@santoshvidwans1736]

मी😂

[@Pink2010S]

Grammy winner. Congratulations 🎉 everyone associated with this song

[@BookDiver]

Yes, I'm here after the news of Grammy Award, this music is out of my syllabus but still enjoyed it.

[@AnkitKumar-iw4gl]

Same here

[@nahanbhora9672]

This song won the Grammys, and we Indians didn't even know the song before this.

[@sln7839]

Indians always require the west to tell these Indians are great.

[@Iamtushar0327]

@@sln7839facts

[@thomasrathnammusic]

Congrats...Pride to be an Indian as well as Thamizhan.. It's the best compilement for our Carnatic music in the Globe.

[@patriciakhan3998]

Brilliant........congrats from Trinidad and Tobago.

[@soundsofnik]

I heard the entire album "This moment" and i must say i have never heard anything like this before ... This is pure gold . Two soundtracks Karuna and Giriraj sudha just blew ky mind...my personal favourite ❤❤ .. god bless Shakti band ..keep making India proud.. much love 🙏🏻

[@bossanovaboy]

John McLauglin has always been great😀

[@apurvagoel10]

This is such a shame that a country most populated has lost interest in the real music and is listening to crap like badshah, neha kakkar and all. Up until this won a grammy we didn’t even knew about it, it was never promoted in mainstream media. I think there is a reason singers like Shankar, hariharan, don’t sing in Indian movies anymore and the reason is US the audience. Such a beautiful music this is ❤

[@rahularora8923]

Check out her playlist on her account, named Dance (check it soon unless she hides it), full of dance numbers from Bollywood, Beyonce and more. And here she is preaching about loving "the real music". The Internet is full of fake people.

[@Trenbol0ne999]

Heartiest congratulations for winning grammy🎻🪕🎸🎤👏🏻🎉

[@sheercerebralpower]

I have a biological father who I love but my musical father is John McLaughlin….I first saw a picture of him all in white on my Vinyl of “The Guitar Album”….when I first heard Open Country Joy, this 14 year old lad started practicing the guitar seriously……42 years later, still my guiding light

[@ivonsmith4255]

Pretty much exactly my own story - same ages and listening & loving period of Johnji's music! at 14 I saw Meeting of the Spirits concert with Larry & Paco on TV - that was 1981 - a year after I started guitar. Like you he's been a guru, inspiration, guide and spiritual & music father figure for me all this time.

[@sheercerebralpower]

@@ivonsmith4255 hi brother in arms….

[@sheercerebralpower]

@@ivonsmith4255 will be meeting him in person again when he comes to my hometown in October……

[@tomhazelton3070]

@@sheercerebralpower I saw him concert last night in Boston. Mind blown.

[@francisvancampenhout396]

Pls come to Belgium , Shakti , messengers of love , beauty and happiness 🙏

[@aakashdubey8780]

This is real Indian soul music

[@LuziGraphics]

Legends transcend Grammys; they embody excellence. ❤

[@funtonicwellu4876]

India shining 🌟🤌❤️

[@pravindeshpande9839]

Hearty congrats for winning Grammy Award. Really beautiful fusion.

[@mhowardthomas]

Cannot wait, ecstatic

[@MiguelCzachowski]

Can't wait !!!

[@mano20029]

Grammy for you Babies ❤❤🎉🎉

[@neelamtopno2761]

Pure music

[@user-oe9tn9ol3e]

Congratulations 🎉 everyone associated with this song

[@kleberveridianogoncalvesde6293]

✌️🙏

[@156615]

I apologise Only after Grammy. I didn't even know

[@malathirajan226]

Congrats team Shakti Proud that u have done India Proud

[@ronakgadhavi808]

Proud of you Shankar Mahadevan Big shout out

[@juanpablojones]

So great they're touring again. Exited about seeing them in London.😊

[@bobcarus1638]

Their performance in Portland Oregon USA in Sept 2023 was beyond amazing. So beautiful to hear their incredible artistry and technical excellence. A new addition to my all-time favorite concerts.

[@nellymoriarty_5783]

I'm hoping with excitement to catch them touring

[@7fusionnn]

cant wait!!!!

[@tanverjitsingh-mk1gf]

A song beyond my knowledge of music. Must be why it is a masterpiece

[@sumeshanand8564]

heartfelt congratulations .....

[@prernamittal7351]

Congratulations ❤❤ so proud ❤❤

[@shauryaasingh1586]

Congratulations 🎊 We are So Proud and inspired❤

[@sunithakohli9384]

Congratulations to everyone..🎉🎉

[@kunalmishra1307]

listen to original Shakti by Zakir, john mclaughlin, Shankar "Joy"(Live Montreux 1976)., pure bliss

[@ujwalabhosale7452]

Congratulations 🎉

[@noklachia89]

Congratulations entire team❤️proud moment😍

[@Vivekanand44]

❤❤❤

[@myjournal428]

Mesmerizing 🫶🫶

[@supriyadutta570]

We are proud of you, Shakti

[@senguptaanirban74]

Congratulations ! and what a shame we didn't even know of this masterpiece till yesterday!

[@blingingrajput]

we missed and knew this after Grammy

[@kvstudio2576]

Best of luck. ..congratulations

[@Ombaby]

Sounds GREAT!!!

[@Anurag_LKO]

🎉🎉🎉Indian Grammy from breathless

[@Tesfaye_heshe]

Just imagine this album wining grammy award 😂😂

[@siddhanthjayanthi1733]

Whats wrong?

[@remy6349]

Everything​@@siddhanthjayanthi1733

[@gajenr9369]

❤

[@spkuniversalcreations6585]

I'm listening just now

[@nevillesuh-yu7ms]

Hmmmm

[@tapatiseth100]

Eagerly waiting for the Shakti World tour,watching them,live.

[@kesharjayswal6395]

Congratulations for Grammy 🎉🎉🥳🎉🥳🥳🎉

[@durgadcl]

Congrats

[@Himankk_music]

This Piece Deserve Grammy❤️

[@pritam285]

All of us

[@mtalks2593]

If this song would have not received Grammy so I don't think I would have been able to find this master piece.

[@ekeneihediora6279]

Best global music award , please any india to translate what the song is saying, Cox apart from the instrumental there's nothing global about this song , it's not even in English or any popular language to be seen as global song , Also with the less views from it's country shows it doesn't has nothing with being global but maybe the translation will help me understand cause right now am confuse

[@padnats]

There are no words to translate in this composition. It's just the language of music, the language of the notes do re mi fa so etc. In India do re me etc. goes like sa re ga ma pa. This is just a medley with musical notes reproduced by voice and different instruments, a dialogue between all these and the exploration of a raga. Raga is also part of Indian classical music. Each raga uses a few of the musical notes. Difficult to explain, so I'll stop there. If interested explore Indian classical music. A tough call! I learnt this style of classical music from the south of India, so I can understand it.

[@ekeneihediora6279]

Alright thanks ,

[@pewakemichaelpezezine3554]

So it this thing that hv won the Grammy

[@trinidadandtobagomazda626g3]

I need to sing some to win a Grammy

[@raushansinghthailand1332]

🤚🏻

[@sudhanshubalananda1074]

India shone at Grammy's. Congratulations !

[@shekharkaushik795]

I'm listening after Grammy ☺️

[@yadav_sunil490]

Grammy 🎉

[@Mr.Sprite_Images]

I’m here after watching VDM 😅 . I like the music sha but no song .. just instrumentals 😅😅

[@adeyinkamakinde4525]

Same here

[@pyramidmeditationandspirit1491]

After grammy...... I am here..... 🎉🎉🎉

[@farukkocak4194]

Why is the full album still not on streaming services???

[@redkingv5741]

I have the same question bro. I am searching for the song Khikhi which is not available In the album

[@sega_pico]

It is on spotify

[@shubhankarbhardwaj045]

Ab aayenge sab log sunne ise😅😅

[@sameerkunnummel7004]

After grammy award just know about this band😅

[@masudranateacher8914]

Who's here after Grammy..? Love❤️❤️

[@rkverma276]

Winner winner Grammy Winner 🏆🎉🏆

[@aakashdhus1873]

Grammy Brought Me Here

[@naynamanojrajput2983]

हमारी तो आदत ही है घर की मुर्गी दाल बराबर। 😅 अब देखो मिलो दूर से कद्र हुई तब जाके यहां पता चला की इतने कम व्यू वाले #shakti एल्बम को #gremmy मिला।

[@B-twizzy]

So na this mumu song beat Davido and BurnaBoy own? I just wasted my data💔

[@amolpatil3656]

Who loves Shankar Mahadevan? ❤❤

[@wisemanejem328]

nawa ooooo. we no blame u guys

[@srijanisallyouneed]

It's Sad to see the Grammy❤ Award winning masterpiece has such in k views Meanwhile other chapri got Million views 😢

[@kassim.i.kamara2312]

Just imagine this album winning Grammy global album with just 28k views globally😂 it’s definitely doesn’t worth it as compared to other afrobeat albums with millions of views worldwide.

[@user_k.7025]

Bhut badhiya, especially the instruments played in this. Vocals need bit more punch to match the energy of music being played.

[@1gak9]

After Grammy’s +1

[@deepeshkumar6030]

Who's is here after hearing the news of GRAMMY AWARD

[@romisingh7964]

Me

[@UnscriptedExploration]

Okay. So No one listened to this before Grammy?

[@user-uk3jg4po6e]

Aswear e no suppose better for Grammy coordinators abi wat ever

[@Peddayana]

Grammy? Never knew they set bar so low!!!

[@ekeneihediora6279]

😂😂😂😂😂😂nooooo nah now this thing dey pain me 😭😭😭😭

[@iskidoo]

Hear wetin win #GRAMMY over Timeless 😂

[@RupeshMahanta_]

Anyone Here after winning Grammy ?😮

[@SunFellow941]

The Goddess Shakti only know why they don't post the full album in the streaming age. It's called the new radio, people!!

[@eberhard1991]

So this song beat Davido and burna Boy at Grammy? Anyways congratulations

[@i_MAKit]

Who's here after Grammy Award

[@alldesigns5800]

Who else quickly rushed here after Grammy?😅😅

[@vivekrajput-bq1dc]

Grammy musics and oscar movies are just weird😅

[@Visitjaipur]

Ek grammy to tony kakkar bhi deserve krta hai 😢

[@Club9ja]

Is this music or what😂 But how Can this generator sound win grammy award?

[@Mr.Vawulence]

2:19 Trying to rap in Thai?😂

[@HarshitGupta-oz9sv]

Talented people after Granny😅

[@niteshpoddar8408]

why this song won grammy ??

[@ekjthecomedian3133]

Who came here from Very Dark man 😂

[@Catsdrama1]

Ei no go better for grammy

[@funkyguy2006]

There are far better Fusion that this.. Just Listen and Decide yourself if you will continue to listen or stop listening?

[@arpad203]

Of course . " The believer" album from "Remember Shakti" formation (McLaughlin, Hussain, Shrinivas, Selvaganesh)

[@Akanksha_32]

Can someone make me understand this what's there to get Grammy, I mean it's good but what's unique about this? Do foreigner understand this or there's indian jury too

[@paolokevinakpamoli7947]

Who be this 😂😂😂