''Elegant Gypsy'' is the second album by American jazz fusion guitarist Al Di Meola. It was released in 1977 by Columbia Records.

Background

''Elegant Gypsy'' was a follow-up album to Di Meola's debut release, '' Land of the Midnight Sun''. The distinctive music on the album is a speedy fusion of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

, with lightning-fast guitar riffs intermixed with lyrical acoustical passages. The songs include explorations of Latin music themes, including acoustic genres like flamenco.Review in Ultimate-guitar.com
/ref> ''Elegant Gypsy'' won an annual award for ''Best Guitar Album'' in ''

Guitar Player Magazine ''Guitar Player'' is an American popular magazine for guitarists, founded in 1967 in San Jose, California. It contains articles, interviews, reviews and lessons of an eclectic collection of artists, genres and products. It has been in print s ...

''.

Track listing

All songs by Al Di Meola unless otherwise noted.

Personnel

* Al Di Meola – guitar, piano, synthesizer, percussion *

Paco de Lucía Francisco Sánchez Gómez (21 December 194725 February 2014), known as Paco de Lucía (;), was a Spanish virtuoso flamenco guitarist, composer, and record producer. A leading proponent of the new flamenco style, he was one of the first flam ...

– guitar * Jan Hammer – keyboards *

Barry Miles Barry Miles (born 21 February 1943) is an English author known for his participation in and writing on the subjects of the 1960s London underground and counterculture. He is the author of numerous books and his work has also regularly appeare ...

– keyboards * Anthony Jackson – bass guitar *

Steve Gadd Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction into the '' Modern ...

– drums * Lenny White – drums *

Mingo Lewis James "Mingo" Lewis (born 8 December 1953) is an American percussionist and drummer who played with Santana, Al Di Meola, Return to Forever (he was a band member for Di Meola's first five albums), and The Tubes. Playing Lewis plays congas, b ...

– congas, synthesizers, organ, percussion

Chart performance

References

1977 albums Al Di Meola albums Columbia Records albums {{1970s-jazz-album-stub