Early Gato Soars
michael johnson | mill valley, ca | 02/23/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This CD from the early 70's is unlike anything most Gato lovers are familiar with - it's way heavier. These are not top 40 pieces, nor are they the discordant and rambling wailings of late Coltrane or Gato's "Third World" album. Each cut on Fenix is unique & rhythmic. These cuts together are a tour de force of Gato's range and debth - haunting melodies with emotional force that grab you in the most hidden areas of your felt sense of musicality. Fenix is in the same genre as "Under Fire" - another early 70's masterpiece. If you listen to all of Fenix in one sitting, the last note of the last piece leaves you spent, moved - like a good session of yoga .. or other pleasant encounters. This is Gato's greatest accomplisment - and with Gato, that's saying alot!"