Shakti with John McLaughlin – Natural Elements (Columbia/Sony, 1977)

John McLaughlin (g, vo); Lakshminarayana Shankar (va, vn, vo); Zakir Hussain (bgo, dholak, perc, tbl, timb, tri, vo); Vikku Vinayakram (ghatam, kanjeera, perc, vo)

Recorded in July 1977

I think Natural Elements is one of the most convincing and effective Indo-jazz fusion records of the decade. Compared with Shakti's earlier records, this album seems more musical and song-oriented.  Rather than focusing on virtuosic displays, this time the group lets the music breathe.