Mysterious Traveller

Mysterious Traveller is the fourth studio album by the jazz and jazz fusion ensemble Weather Report and was released in 1974. This was their final recording with founding bassist Miroslav Vitouš, who left due to creative differences. Vitouš was replaced by Alphonso Johnson. Another addition to the line-up is drummer Ishmael Wilburn. Greg Errico was the drummer for the tour between the previously released Sweetnighter and this album, but declined an invitation to be a permanent member of the band.

This article is about the Weather Report album. For the System 7 compilation album, see System 7 (band). For the anthology radio series, see The Mysterious Traveler.
Mysterious Traveller
Studio album by
Weather Report
ReleasedMarch 24, 1974
RecordedNovember 1973–March 1974
StudioDevonshire Sound Studios, Los Angeles
GenreJazz fusion
Length48:17
LabelColumbia
ProducerJosef Zawinul, Wayne Shorter
Weather Report chronology
Sweetnighter
(1973)		 Mysterious Traveller
(1974)		 Tale Spinnin'
(1975)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB[2]
Sputnikmusic[3]
All About Jazz(favorable)[4]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide[5]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings[6]

The record is the band's first that predominantly uses electric bass and incorporates liberal uses of funk, R&B grooves, and rock that would later be hallmarked as the band's "signature" sound. Also, the more restricted compositional format became evident on this album, replacing the more "open improvisation" formats used on the first three albums. It was voted as the album of the year by the readers of DownBeat for 1974, garnering Weather Report's second overall win in that category, also garnering a five-star review from that publication along the way. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings included the album in its suggested “core collection” of essential recordings.[6]

The album peaked at number 2 in the Billboard Jazz Albums chart, number 31 in the R&B album chart, and number 46 in the Billboard 200.[7]

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Nubian Sundance"Zawinul10:40
2."American Tango"Vitouš, Zawinul3:40
3."Cucumber Slumber"Johnson, Zawinul8:22
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Mysterious Traveller"Shorter7:21
2."Blackthorn Rose"Shorter5:03
3."Scarlet Woman"Johnson, Shorter, Zawinul5:46
4."Jungle Book"Zawinul7:25
Total length:48:17
Mastersound SBM bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
8."Miroslav’s Tune"Vitouš5:25

Personnel

Weather Report
Guest musicians
  • Ray Barretto - percussion (track 3 only)
  • Muruga Booker - percussion (track 1 only)
  • Steve Little - timpani (track 6 only)
  • Don Ashworth - ocarinas & woodwinds (track 7 only)
  • Isacoff - tabla, finger cymbals (track 7 only)
  • Edna Wright - vocals (track 1 only)
  • Marti McCall - vocals (track 1 only)
  • Jessica Smith - vocals (track 1 only)
  • James Gilstrap - vocals (track 1 only)
  • Billie Barnum - vocals (track 1 only)
Technical
  • Ron Malo - sound engineer
  • Teresa Alfieri - cover design
  • Helmut K. Wimmer - cover artwork

Chart performance
Chart (1974) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[8] 97
US Billboard 200[7] 46
US Jazz Albums[7] 2
US R&B Albums[7] 31
Canada RPM Top 100 Albums[9] 57

References
  1. Yanow, Scott. "Mysterious Traveller - Weather Report | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 July 2011. Yanow
  2. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: W". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 22, 2019. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  3. Campbell, Hernan M. (20 August 2012). "Review: Weather Report - Mysterious Traveller | Sputnikmusic". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  4. Jenkins, Todd S. (23 April 2002). "Weather Report: Mysterious Traveller". Allaboutjazz.com. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  5. Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 204. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
  6. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1475. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  7. "Mysterious Traveller - Weather Report | Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 334. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. "RPM Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
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