Jeff Beck’s drummer discusses the brilliance and downfall of Tommy Bolin.]

Narada Michael Walden has built a career as a first-call percussionist for some of the world’s most celebrated electric guitar virtuosos. His résumé includes work with John McLaughlin in Mahavishnu Orchestra, Carlos Santana, Robert Fripp, Neal Schon and Jeff Beck, with whom he says he recorded an album’s worth of unreleased material.

Among the six-string luminaries on that list is a more tragic figure: Tommy Bolin.

The two met in 1975, by which point Bolin had emerged as one of rock’s fastest-rising stars. After a stint in the James Gang — where he replaced Domenic Troiano, who had replaced Joe Walsh — Bolin elevated his profile with his explosive performance on Spectrum, the 1973 solo debut by Billy Cobham.

Widely regarded as a foundational jazz-fusion release, Spectrum helped codify the genre’s high-velocity, technically demanding aesthetic. The record fused rock aggression with jazz sophistication, influencing players like Beck and helping define fusion’s 1970s sound. Bolin’s fiery, Echoplex-driven tone on tracks such as “Stratus” and “Quadrant 4” became his breakout statement.