Billy Cobham
Spectrum

Spectrum (1973) is the debut album of Panamanian fusion drummer Billy Cobham (1944), who at the time could already boast an exceptional track record having collaborated with George Benson, the Brecker Brothers, and Miles Davis, especially since 1971 as a member of the legendary Mahavishnu Orchestra of John McLaughlin. Billy Cobham is peacefully placed in the pantheon of the best drummers of all time, a true monster of technique, inventiveness, and instrumental presence, and all this is perfectly perceived in this fundamental and famous debut, also because the percussion is mixed in the foreground and the album boasts remarkable audio quality for its time. The drummer provides a fundamental contribution here to the musical genre of fusion and especially jazz-rock, which had taken hold assertively both in Europe and the States, representing an extremely stimulating novelty for lovers of adult and intelligent rock.

Jazz-rock indeed benefits from the same muscular charge and propensity for effect that characterize rock since the late sixties, crossing musical genres like funky and more animated jazz with the same elements that had made hard rock successful: speed, energy, showcased musical technique, instrumental excesses, along with that satisfaction in the pursuit of virtuosity that is often found in modern jazz... a genre admittedly cold, because the feeling is all in the virtuosic tension of instrumental exchanges, sudden breaks, and changes of tempo, but nonetheless exciting for the refinement of harmonic texture (jazz chords are notoriously endless, changeable, contiguous, and different) and the elegance and excellence of typically instrumental performances.

Just as Chick Corea was doing on the Return To Forever front (the best jazz-rock group ever), Billy Cobham fills his otherwise excellent compositions with sudden variations, very fast inserts, and off-beat mutations, with his drums almost perpetually in solo in almost all tracks, with continuous exchanges of snare, bass drum, and toms, even "mathematical" ones (odd times used to accompany 4/4 beats, until the least common multiple recalculates the count and realigns times). It is clear at this point that it's a listening experience designed primarily for those who revel in musical technique, but I think it is always pleasant to hear skilled and competent playing, and it's not that there's a lack of feeling in the performances, it's just that it's undeniably more self-referential, self-satisfied, and less communicative compared to other less complex but much more direct musical expressions, like the blues. Here the musician plays more for themselves than to communicate, but lovers of virtuosity will find plenty to sink their teeth into with this Spectrum, as the ensemble assembled by the drummer truly deserves applause: Jan Hammer, Ron Carter, John Tropea, Joe Farrell, along with other less-known yet very talented supporting musicians, including Tommy Bolin, a future member of Deep Purple, who would benefit greatly from the fame gained from this album.

The compositions are very beautiful and above all, extremely balanced between smooth jazz/fusion, of which genre they do not present the proverbial cloyingness (see Grover Washington), and true jazz-rock, handled with much greater elegance and not so aggressive and overwhelming overall tonality (as happens instead, for example, in the famous Duel Of The Jester And The Tyrant by RTF). The start of Quadrant 4 is spectacular and famous, heart-stopping drumming for all four minutes, and a rightly celebrated keyboard and guitar solo (especially on keyboard: Jan Hammer's sound can mimic very well the electric guitar, resulting in much of the instrumental technique attributed to Bolin being actually supported by synthesizers, listen with headphones to verify). Spectrum and Taurian Matador are other rock fusion gems, stalwarts of a stage career, while the long Stratus - one of the best tracks on the album - allows itself an impressive introduction between dreamy keyboards and the virtuosic pulse of the drums. The reflective Le Lis finally leads to the famous Snoopy's Search/Red Baron, where a funky mid-tempo is distorted by breakneck tempo changes and intelligent use of effects, including electronic.

Regardless of genre labels and instrumental self-satisfaction, this album is assembled with very beautiful compositions, played with skill and elegance, and is truly thrilling for a wide audience of listeners and for this reason, it has always been notably appreciated by rock and prog audiences. Billy Cobham would continue a successful career more in true fusion than jazz-rock, and would give us even very beautiful records, but would never again replicate the great energy, instrumental mastery, and rock presence that in '73 produced this famous Spectrum, generally simplistically referred to as "the only jazz record that rock fans love to death." That's not true and I don't see why jazz should only be enjoyed by jazz enthusiasts, but evidently at the time it was meant as a compliment, and indeed everyone did have this record in those years, even Deep Purple or Genesis fans, and also those of Guccini.