vision songs vol. 1 (1984) is the laraaji album like no other, located at the intersection of new age and gospel. it is both his outlier and magnum opus, the feel-good diy tape of the century. discovered busking in washington square park by brian eno in the late 70s, engagement with the eternal flow has led laraaji to, seemingly by magic, emerge as the most beloved avatar of the unstoppable new age music revival of recent years. now vision songs rewrites laraaji’s musical history. unlike the many instrumental, free form albums upon which his reputation was built, this is an album of songs, with lyrics, verses, choruses. vision songs is literally a revelation -- of a master songwriter whose unbelievably catchy best compositions such as “we shall be lifted”, “all of a sudden”, and “is this clear?” belong in any great american songbook. casio synth jams recorded at spiritual retreat guest rooms and a tiny bedroom on the upper west side, lysergicallyspectacular anthems for a continually arriving new moment, “channeled,” as laraaji states in the album’s eloquent liner notes, “from the sky,” previously available in an edition of 100 cassettes sold at yoga retreats and on the streets of new york city, vision songs is humbly offered on vinyl, cd, and streaming for the very first time. this is where this is going on, this is where this is taking place, this is how this is going on. is this very clear?
