Still barely 21, this was Di Meola's much-anticipated first solo outing. As a teen he'd seemingly come from nowhere to light up those classic Return To Forever albums, and Land of The Midnight Sun would be a dry run for his best fusion recordings, Electric Gypsy, Casino and the incandescent, live, Tour De Force. Charles Waring's notes assert, er, “Jazz-rock guitar playing would never be the same again.” Whether that's a good thing is a different question. Jazz history likes to give itself intellectual, highbrow roots. But musicians tell different stories: it's what you heard as a young teen that inspires you. So Terje Rypdal only wanted to be Hank Marvin, Allan Holdsworth still can't get those Scotty Moore licks down and Di Meola, let's face it, is Nokie Edwards squeezed through a latin prism. Edwards and The Ventures underwrite much of Di Meola's style: those velocitudinous ascending lines, the staccato touch, the dynamics, the love of a good tune, a showbiz panache and sheer unadulterated volume. And of course Edwards drew deep on Johnny Smith so the jazz roots are there. But don't be fooled by Di Meola's cover of a Bach sarabande, or the dippy ‘Love Theme…’, a mystic phantasmagoria with a George Harrison vibe. (Harrison of course being a hero of Di Meola, and Harrison as a kid loved… Nokie Edwards.) And don't be diverted by the acoustic noodling with Corea on ‘Short Tales Of The Black Forest’, what you crave is the full throttle, urban surf-rock that is ‘Suite Golden Dawn’ with Di Meola facing off against Pastorious in his funky prime or the blistering opener, ‘The Wizard’. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, and all that.