Al DiMeola: Santa Monica Civic, Santa Monica CA

WHILE THERE'S no doubting Al DiMeola's technical abilities or his thorough knowledge of the guitar from jazz, rather than jazz-rock, roots, several things conspired to make his Civic show a disaster. First, he unwisely told an already unruly crowd that he was recording for a live album, which started a series of war whoops, yells and whistles that obscured nearly every solo played.