Shakti | |
|---|---|
 Shakti in 1976 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Turiyananda Sangit(in the early days) |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1973–1978; 2020–present |
| Labels | |
| Spinoffs | Remember Shakti |
| Members | |
| Past members | |
Shakti is afusion band founded by English guitaristJohn McLaughlin and IndianviolinistL. Shankar with percussionistsZakir Hussain (ontabla) andVikku Vinayakram (onghatam).[1] Initially formed in 1973 under the name “Turiyananda Sangit” (a name coined bySri Chinmoy that translates into English as “The pinnacle of delight in music”),[2] with a lineup consisting of McLaughlin,L. Shankar,Ramnad V. Raghavan (on mridangam) and Eve McLaughlin onTanpura &Shruti box.[3][4][5] Eve McLaughlin left the project, andZakir Hussain was added on tabla, and the group name changed to “Shakti” (meaning "creative intelligence, beauty, and power."[6]) as the band wanted a name that “listeners in the West could relate to”.[7] Raghavan also didn't stay with the project beyond the first album, and Vikku was added (on ghatam) for the remainder of Shakti’s early career. The group played acousticfusion music which combinedCarnatic music with elements ofjazz.
In addition to fusing Western (Jazz,Celtic folk,Classical music) with Eastern music, Shakti also represented a fusion of theHindustani andCarnatic music traditions, since Hussain was fromNorthern India whileShankar and Vikku are from theSouth.[8]
The group came together after the dissolution of the first incarnation of theMahavishnu Orchestra, and toured fairly extensively during the period 1975-1977. After 1977, the albums thatShankar recorded with Hussain and Vikku stayed close to the music they had popularized in Shakti.
Two concerts at theMontreux Jazz Festival (July 6, 1976 and July 8, 1977) are included among the 17 CDs of the box setMontreux Concerts byJohn McLaughlin.[9]
_at_a_concert_in_India_in_1982.jpg)
Between 1982 and 1984, Shakti regrouped for reunion tours in India, this time with L. Shankar performing on hisdouble violin.[10]
In 1997, McLaughlin and Hussain put togetherRemember Shakti, includingV. Selvaganesh (son ofT. H. "Vikku" Vinayakram ), electric mandolin playerU. Shrinivas and eventually vocalistShankar Mahadevan.
The band reformed in 2020,[11] and released their first album as Shakti in 46 years,This Moment, on 23 June 2023.[12] The album was supported by a world tour, including India, Europe, and the United States, under the name Shakti50.[3] ViolinistGanesh Rajagopalan joined the band as a full-time member. The band also performed a live set for theTiny Desk Concert.
In 2024, Shakti won theGrammy Award for theBest Global Music Album for the albumThis Moment. Shakti received twoGrammy nominations for the albumMind Explosion [50th Anniversary Tour Live] in theBest Global Music Album category for the 2026 Grammy Awards.[13][14]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [15] | US Jazz [15] | SWE [16] | ||||||||||||
| Shakti with John McLaughlin | 194 | 37 | — | |||||||||||
| A Handful of Beauty |
| 168 | 32 | 42 | ||||||||||
| Natural Elements |
| — | — | — | ||||||||||
| This Moment |
| — | — | — | ||||||||||
| Mind Explosion (50th Anniversary Tour Live) |
| — | — | — | ||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
