Bgo Vinyl & CDs

Review: Outside of jazz-fusion circles, violinist and composer Jean-Luc Ponty is best known for two things: embracing synthesizers and electronic instruments (including electric violin) earlier than his peers, and playing a small but significant role in inspiring some of Detroit techno's earliest innovators. This double disc set rounds up three of the albums that proved most inspirational to electronic musicians. Disc one sports 1987's warm, colourful and mesmerising The Gift of Time - where, fittingly, Ponty's ability to create surprising and intense off-kilter dancefloor workouts was first noticed by adventurous DJs - and 1989's Storytelling, which kicks off with his most famous work: the awe-inspiring 'In The Fast Lane'. Over on disc two, we get 1991's Tchokola, an inspired mix of fusion, Afrobeat and Zouk flavours that has long been a favourite amongst Balearic silverbacks.