Trio of Doom
Encyclopedia
The Trio of Doom was a short-lived jazz fusion
power trio
consisting of John McLaughlin
on guitar, Jaco Pastorius
on bass, and Tony Williams on drums. They were brought together by Columbia Records
in 1979 to play the Havana Jam
festival in Cuba
alongside Billy Joel
, Kris Kristofferson
, Rita Coolidge
, and others.
Their only live performance was on March 3, 1979, and it is recorded on Ernesto Juan Castellanos
's documentary Havana Jam '79
.
On March 8, 1979, the group reconvened in New York City
to record the songs they had played live. An album was released on June 26, 2007, on Legacy Recordings
, containing five tracks from Havana Jam and five recorded in the studio. Entitled simply "Trio of Doom". The album contained the following songs:
Tracks 1-5 were recorded March 3, 1979, at the Karl Marx Theater, Havana, Cuba. Tracks 6-10 were recorded March 8, 1979, at CBS Studios, New York.
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
power trio
Power trio
A power trio is a rock and roll band format where the traditional power trio has a lineup of guitar, bass and drums, leaving out the rhythm guitar or keyboard that are used in other rock music to fill out the sound with chords...
consisting of John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
on guitar, Jaco Pastorius
Jaco Pastorius
John Francis Anthony Pastorius III , known as Jaco Pastorius, was an American jazz musician and composer widely acknowledged as a virtuoso electric bass player....
on bass, and Tony Williams on drums. They were brought together by Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
in 1979 to play the Havana Jam
Havana Jam
Havana Jam was a three-day music festival that took place at the Karl Marx Theater, in Havana, Cuba, on 2-4 March, 1979. It was sponsored by Bruce Lundvall, the president of Columbia Records, Jerry Masucci, the president of Fania Records, and the Cuban Ministry of Culture.The festival included, on...
festival in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
alongside Billy Joel
Billy Joel
William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
, Kris Kristofferson
Kris Kristofferson
Kristoffer "Kris" Kristofferson is an American musician, actor, and writer. He is known for hits such as "Me and Bobby McGee", "For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Night"...
, Rita Coolidge
Rita Coolidge
Rita Coolidge is a multiple Grammy Award-winning American vocalist. During the 1970s and 1980s, she charted hits on Billboard's Pop, Country, Adult Contemporary and Jazz charts.-Career:...
, and others.
Their only live performance was on March 3, 1979, and it is recorded on Ernesto Juan Castellanos
Ernesto Juan Castellanos
Ernesto Juan Castellanos, born in 1963, is a freelance author, translator, journalist, filmmaker and researcher who lives and works in Havana, Cuba. In 1996, he started organizing the Cuban Beatles conventions, which opened doors to the world of writing...
's documentary Havana Jam '79
Havana Jam '79
Havana Jam ’79 is an hour-long documentary written, produced and directed in 2009 by Cuban author, journalist and filmmaker Ernesto Juan Castellanos....
.
On March 8, 1979, the group reconvened in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to record the songs they had played live. An album was released on June 26, 2007, on Legacy Recordings
Legacy Recordings
Legacy Recordings is Sony Music Entertainment's catalog division. It was founded in 1990 by CBS Records under the leadership of Jerry Shulman, Richard Bauer, Gary Pacheco and Amy Herot to handle reissues of recordings from the vast catalogues of Columbia Records, Epic Records and associated...
, containing five tracks from Havana Jam and five recorded in the studio. Entitled simply "Trio of Doom". The album contained the following songs:
- "Drum Improvisation" (Tony Williams) – 2:46
- "Dark Prince" (John McLaughlin) – 6:36
- "Continuum" (Jaco Pastorius) – 5:11
- "Para Oriente" (Tony Williams) – 5:42
- "Are You the One, Are You the One?" (John McLaughlin) – 4:51
- "Dark Prince" (John McLaughlin) – 4:11
- "Continuum" (Jaco Pastorius) – 3:49
- "Para Oriente" (alternate take one) (Tony Williams) – 1:05
- "Para Oriente" (alternate take two) (Tony Williams) – 0:20
- "Para Oriente" (Tony Williams) – 5:28
Tracks 1-5 were recorded March 3, 1979, at the Karl Marx Theater, Havana, Cuba. Tracks 6-10 were recorded March 8, 1979, at CBS Studios, New York.