John McLaughlin

𝘼 𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙟𝙖𝙯𝙯, 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙖—𝙈𝙮 𝙂𝙤𝙖𝙡’𝙨 𝘽𝙚𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙅𝙤𝙝𝙣 𝙈𝙘𝙇𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙡𝙞𝙣’𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨.

Released in 1971, this pivotal album marked McLaughlin’s deepening immersion into Eastern philosophy and music, foreshadowing the creation of the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Divided into two distinct halves, the record opens with lush, orchestrated ensemble pieces featuring contributions from jazz greats like Charlie Haden, Billy Cobham, Airto Moreira, and Badal Roy, blending modal jazz with Indian rhythmic cycles. The second side shifts to a series of intimate solo acoustic guitar meditations, steeped in the influence of Ravi Shankar and the spiritual guidance of Sri Chinmoy.

My Goal’s Beyond captures a moment of transition—between electric fusion fire and serene acoustic contemplation—remaining a timeless document of cross-cultural musical devotion.