After a delay of nearly five years since the release (in 1996) of his final Atlantic CD, Live at Chene Park, Jean-Luc Ponty's debut for his JLP label proves to be a finely hewed masterpiece from the violinist's studio workshop.
He plays many of the instruments himself (keyboards, electronic drums and percussion, and synclavier) through overdubbing on most of the tracks, although it's readily apparent that these new compositions will work in performance with the talented supporting cast of his touring band.
Ponty goes it alone on the richly textured "Two Thousand-One Years Ago," and the mournful "Lonely Among All." But "Pizzy Cat" (a playful shorthand reference to pizzicato), featuring Ponty unaccompanied, without overdubs, strumming and plucking his five-string Midi electric violin with synclavier, proves to be the most compelling of the solo performances.
The band members join him in various combinations on the remaining tracks, with the full group heard only on "Firmament," which is seasoned with a catchy blend of Oriental and African flavorings.
This is easily one of Jean-Luc Ponty's most compelling releases.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Two Thousand-One Years AgoJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 04:20 | 9 MB | 32 MB |
| 2 | Signals from Planet EarthJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 06:03 | 13 MB | 35 MB |
| 3 | The Infinite Human CaravanJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 06:37 | 15 MB | 43 MB |
| 4 | Lonely Among AllJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 04:25 | 10 MB | 22 MB |
| 5 | FirmamentJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 07:22 | 16 MB | 44 MB |
| 6 | Pizzy CatJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 03:16 | 7 MB | 11 MB |
| 7 | Life EnigmaJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 05:56 | 13 MB | 36 MB |
| 8 | Even the Sun Will DieJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 05:37 | 12 MB | 35 MB |
| 9 | Love at Last SightJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 05:15 | 12 MB | 32 MB |
| 10 | And Life Goes OnJean-Luc Ponty | Jean-Luc Ponty | Play | 06:01 | 13 MB | 38 MB |
| 54 mins | 125 MB | |||||
| 54 mins | 333 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guy Nsangué Akwa | Bass (Electric), Soloist |
| 2 | Thierry Arpino | Drums, Shaker |
| 3 | Greg Calbi | Mastering |
| 4 | Alan Chappell | Art Direction, Design |
| 5 | Moustapha Cisse | Percussion |
| 6 | Ioannis | Art Direction, Design, Digital Art, Digital Artwork |
| 7 | William Lecomte | Piano, Soloist |
| 8 | Guy N'Sangue | Bass (Electric) |
| 9 | Jean-Luc Ponty | Composer, Effects, Electronic Drums, Electronic Percussion, Engineer, Keyboards, Primary Artist, Producer, Synclavier, Violin, Wood Block |
| 10 | Adam Rogers | Photography |
| 11 | Karim Sai | Engineer, Mixing |
| 12 | Alvaro Yanez | Cover Photo |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |