Flesh on Flesh
Ever since he burst on the scene as a teenage member of the fusion groupReturn to Forever, Al Di Meola has reigned as a guitar god in jazz, flamenco,  and world music circles. Those genres are well represented on this disc,  with guests Cuban pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba, flutist Alejandro  Santos, and World Sinfonia members Gumbi Ortiz (percussion) and  Mario Parmisano (keyboards). While Di Meola's lightning licks are still in effect, they  are tempered by Old World, classically tinged settings with a dash of  '70s-style fusion. Chick Corea's "Señor Mouse" is elegantly reworked, and  "Fugata" by the Argentine tango master Astor Piazzolla retains cool and  complex contrapuntal lines. Di Meola plays a number of guitars on this date,  from a 1958 Les Paul to an Ovation model, but it's all Al Di Meola and it's  all good.--Eugene Holley Jr.