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Al Di Meola releases his new single ‘Eden’ from his upcoming album ‘Twentyfour’ through earMUSIC.

Friday Night in San Francisco is a 1981 live album by Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucía. It was described by jazz author and critic Walter Kolosky as "a musical event that could be compared to the Benny Goodman Band's performance at Carnegie Hall in 1938 … [it] may be considered the most influential of all live acoustic guitar albums".

A fantastic meeting of 3 extraordinary guitarists is one of the most influential of all Live Acoustic guitar albums. This 1981 album by Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia recorded at The Warfield Theatre on December 5, 1980, in San Francisco. All tracks are live except for the last track, "Guardian Angel", which is the opening theme from a song that appears on McLaughlin's 1978 Electric Dreams album. This marked the triumph of the acoustic guitar trio as the first avant-garde style of flamenco jazz was forged. Their debut recording became a landmark recording that surpassed the two million mark in sales. This is an Audiophile Must-Have.

The thundering power of high energy rock fuelled fusion, the subtly woven sounds of Latin American music and in particular the music of his Argentinian friend and inspiration Astor Piazzolla, deliver the breathtaking interchange between acoustic and electric between sensitivity and daring, solo brilliance and mutual understanding within a group performance…

Fusion firebrand Al Di Meola continues his passion of the 1990s, compositions written and inspired by Astor Piazzolla. What's remarkable is how strong Di Meola's own music sounds next to those of the late Brazilian tango avatar. "Misterio" opens the album and sets the tone with a lush, romantic setting for acoustic guitar interpolated with colorful accents of sitar and winds, triggered by Di Meola's MIDI-guitar. It's a dynamic piece that takes unusual twists, and it sits comfortably next to Piazzolla's "Double Concerto," which follows. Again, using his strangely uncredited MIDI-guitar, Di Meola emulates Piazzolla's inimitable bandoneon sound. The guitarist has assembled a phenomenal group, including bassist John Patitucci, percussionists Gumbi Ortiz and Arto Tuncboyacian, pianist Mario Parmisano, and second guitarist Hernan Romero.

With the virtuosity of his playing, Di Meola is often overlooked as a composer, and The Grande Passion underscores what a fine composer he is. String arrangements color "Double Concerto," the title track, and several other pieces, but Di Meola hardly needs orchestral frills to legitimize his already epic compositions. The guitarist has slipped from critical prominence since the days of Return to Forever, Splendido Hotel and the guitar trio with John McLaughlin and Paco De Lucia (try out Friday Night in San Francisco for a great trio outing), but Di Meola spent the 1990s doing some of his best work with his World Sinfonia group and The Grande Passion starts the new millennium in fine form. – John Diliberto

Guitarist Al Di Meola has been internationally recognized over the past four decades as a virtuoso in performance and composition. His new album "Opus" is exactly what audiences expect, musically brilliant and an effortless fusion of acoustic and electric sounds.