All of 17 when he joined
Miles Davis's quintet, drummer Tony Williams matured with one of the greatest jazz ensembles of the mid-1960s, revolutionizing jazz drumming in the process. By the time he was ready to strike out on his own in 1969, Williams had developed a longstanding interest in rock music, and his new band Lifetime -- with guitarst John Mclaughlin and organist
Larry Young -- would reflect that passion. Where Davis's recent fusion experiments were on the loose and spacey side, EMERGENCY! was all about rock energy and immediacy. EMERGENCY! , messy, sprawling and raw-sounding as it is, remains one of the most exciting recordings of its time, positively overflowing with full-force playing and the infectious joy of pioneers exploring the unexplored. Echoes of this incandescent recording can be distinctly heard in guitarist John McLaughlin's subsequent
Mahavishnu Orchestra and the jazz-rock onslaught that followed in its path.
