Jackie McAuley-Jackie McAuley (1971)

This is another one of those unjustly overlooked albums in the history of rock music, a minor masterpiece that masterfully fuses diverse styles such as jazz, folk rock, and blues. Jackie McAuley is a relatively unknown figure to most, yet he was a member of Van Morrison's legendary band, Them, and with them, he released some of the Irish band's best albums. After leaving Them, McAuley participated in various projects, such as the duo Trade Home with former Fairport Convention member Judy Dyble, with whom he recorded the excellent "Morning Way" in 1970. In 1971, he released his first solo album with some of the most promising young British jazz musicians of the time, including Tony Roberts, Mike Travis, and Mike McNaught, all members of the Henry Lowther Band. In this debut, McAuley showcases an eclectic sound where pleasing melodies and subtle rhythms make this album a collection of songs brimming with quality and ingenuity. Right from the opening and prodigious "Turning Green", he demonstrates the instrumental and compositional abilities of this guitarist and keyboardist, somewhat forgotten today. The rest follows a similar vein with tracks like the hypnotic "Boy On The Bayou" and the somewhat progressive "Away", forming a delightful album and a work that deserved far more recognition than it received at the time.