John McLaughlin's History with Mahavishnu and Shakti

John McLaughlin played in one of the house bands known as Mike Carr Trio at Ronnie Scott's in 1966/’67. McLaughlin played two nights at Ronnie Scott's and requested that these concerts be recorded. McLaughlin also joined Tony Williams's Lifetime group and took part in the Emergency! album. Miles Davis recruited McLaughlin into his lineup to play on the albums In A Silent Way and Bitches Brew. Furthermore, McLaughlin met Zakir Hussain in 1969 when they arrived in the United States.

McLaughlin founded Mahavishnu Orchestra in 1971, bringing Billy Cobham into the group. Jan Hammer joined the group founded by McLaughlin, playing Fender Rhodes. Regarding his musical studies, McLaughlin stated that he worked on North Indian music in 1972 and also worked on South Indian music in that same year. In 1973, McLaughlin met L Shankar, who was the first violinist of the group Shakti.

In the mid-1970s, McLaughlin turned to Indian music and worked with Shakti. McLaughlin stated that Mahavishnu Orchestra came to an end towards the end of 1975, stating that he wanted to focus his work on Shakti.