[2] John McLaughlin explained that the album pays several homages: "Here come the Jiis" is dedicated to the memory of musician U. Srinivas with whom he played for 14 years; the piece "Panditji" is a sign of respect to Pandit Ravi Shankar, with whom he studied under during the mid-1970s; and the composition "El Hombre que Sabià" is dedicated to the late flamenco musician Paco de Lucía.

His nine years with the 4th Dimension quartet – featuring the British pianist Gary Husband, bass guitarist Étienne M’Bappé and percussionist Ranjit Barot – have also had plenty of flying guitar breaks, anthemic themes, chattery Indo-scat and pin-sharp unison licks, but Black Light's emergence in October heralded a new maturity and even a rare spaciousness....

The 4th Dimension remain as professional and precise as ever, particularly drummer Ranjit Barot who debatably has the most precarious and thereby the most important job of the band by keeping all the elements tied together.

"[9] Ira Kantor of Elmore Magazine noted "Throughout the album, as on Now Here This, you get the image of McLaughlin with his head bobbing, a smile on his face as his fingers work their magic.

“El Hombre Que Sabia” is a tribute to flamenco giant Paco de Lucia, featuring fast-flying fingers across an acoustic guitar.