Recorded during the summer of last year, this is the second album by this version of 4th Dimension and numbers among the guitarist's finest albums of the last two decades. There is much here to excite – and not just guitar freaks; there is cohesion, mutual empathy and a powerful group sound that lifts this album above the pack. Recorded live in front of what McLaughlin has described as a “terrific audience,” it certainly seems to have brought the best out of these players. McLaughlin was 72 when this album was recorded, but there is no sense of slackening resolve: he still has this remarkable ability to compress a lot of musical information into small spaces. M'Bappé (formerly of the Zawinul Syndicate) is the powerhouse of the band, while Barot has that priceless gift of doing precisely the right thing at the right time. Husband continues to enhance his reputation – he really is emerging as a musician's musician.

John McLaughlin spoke to Jazzwise about the album

Looking at your tour itinerary of the Far East which you are engaged in at the moment, it would be exhausting for someone half your age – what keeps you going?

I guess I'm very lucky to be healthy, and I have to say playing music gives me much more than I give it. I can say this in all seriousness in spite of the fact that my life has been dedicated to music in general, and the guitar in particular. Music gives me things I cannot really describe, but on several levels whether physical, mental or spiritual.

Listening to this album over and again, it is difficult not to conclude it numbers among your finest recorded work – is that something you would agree with?

I certainly agree with you though after the performance, none of us were sure about the recording. I waited about two weeks after the tour to put some distance between playing and listening, but it was a wonderful surprise when I made the first playback. I called the guys and told them, and when they heard it they were like me, really surprised, and very happy!

There are moments on this album when the energy and creativity match those of the old Mahavishnu band and you even include a Mahavishnu number ‘You Know, You Know’ where the past becomes the future. There were some wonderful compositions back in the day from that band that deserve to be heard again – is this something you might consider, or is what is done is done?

You're absolutely right; there is a common thread or a kind of connection between the two bands, and of course, Gary, Étienne and Ranjit can play anything I throw at them and leads me to say that this is the best band I've ever had; the tunes I've written going all the way back to Mahavishnu are all part of my personal history, and our repertory includes pieces such as ‘You Know, You Know,’ but also tunes that come from the later 1970s, 80s and 90s all the way up to today. This gives us a really broad spectrum of music to play. The principal reason why we're not playing more of the original Mahavishnu tunes is because of this; plus, there's a lot of new music we like to play. Maybe we'll do a CD of only those Mahavishnu tunes. What a nice idea.

Regular working bands are becoming something of a rarity in jazz, can you speak about how important it is to your music to have musicians around you with whom you have developed empathy and understanding.

It's essential. In a way, you cannot hide in music, plus, music can only thrive in an atmosphere of love, affection, admiration and respect, and these elements are all present in this band.