CHICK COREA AND RETURN TO FOREVER

Although Weather Report lasted fifteen years, its main competitor, Chick Corea’s Return to Forever, did not make it to its sixth year—counting three different versions of the group. Corea, a talented pianist, spent important periods playing with the bands of Mongo Santamaria, Willie Bobo, trumpeter Blue Mitchell from 1964 to 1966, Herbie Mann, Stan Getz, and Miles Davis from 1968 to 1970. With Davis he began performing on electric piano and was one of the first keyboardists to develop his own individual sound on this instrument. After leaving the trumpeter, Corea took a detour, playing in the avant-garde quartet Circle with altoist Anthony Braxton in 1971 before deciding that he had a need to communicate to a much wider audience.

Corea formed the original version of Return to Forever in late 1971. It was a quintet featuring singer Flora Purim, Airto on drums and percussion, Joe Farrell on reeds, and bassist Stanley Clarke. Among the songs they popularized were Corea’s “Spain,” “500 Miles High,” “Sometime Ago,” “La Fiesta,” and “Captain Marvel.” Its music was an interesting combination of post-bop jazz and Brazilian fusion, played with a light melodic feel.

In 1973 Purim and Airto went out on their own, and Corea put together his most famous version of Return to Forever. With Clarke returning, and now emphasizing electric bass, the group was filled out by drummer Lenny White and originally Bill Connors on guitar; Al DiMeola took over from Connors after the first album when the latter decided to focus on acoustic guitar in his solo career. This very rock-oriented version of Return to Forever lasted three years, at its best when playing Corea’s compositions. It was a perfect setting for Clarke and White in particular, and an excellent training ground for DiMeola who was only nineteen when he joined.

From 1973 to 1976, Return to Forever gave Weather Report a run for its money as the most popular of the fusion band. Its complex rock-oriented performances delighted huge crowds of rock fans, some of whom were inspired to explore Corea’s earlier work. Although no loss of enthusiasm can be heard on the band’s final album, Romantic Warrior , Return to Forever’s breakup seemed inevitable, given DiMeola’s growing popularity and Clarke’s interest in playing funk. By the end of 1976 Corea broke up the band. There was a third version of Return to Forever in 1977, a nine-piece group that included Clarke, Joe Farrell, and singer Gayle Moran, Corea’s wife. That small big band hinted at fusion while also being hard bop oriented, but it did not last long.

None of the members of the second version of Return to Forever had difficulty finding work after the group disbanded. Corea worked on a wide variety of short-lived projects for the next decade, including occasional duets with vibraphonist Gary Burton, a two-piano tour with Herbie Hancock, collaborations

with tenor-saxophonist Michael Brecker, and recordings with trios and as a solo pianist. In 1986, after years of mostly emphasizing his work on acoustic piano, Corea organized a new fusion group, the Elektric Band. Comprising bassist John Patitucci, drummer Dave Weckl, altoist Eric Marienthal, and guitarist Frank Gambale who replaced Scott Henderson, the Elektric Band lasted for five years. It featured more variety than Return to Forever, with acoustic interludes and some swinging moments in addition to the rock, funk, and electronics. Patitucci proved to be a phenomenal bassist and also played with Corea in his more straight-ahead Akoustic Band, an acoustic trio with Weckl. Corea has since had a reunion tour with the Elektric Band and continued working on acoustic projects too, including the sextet Horizon and trios with bassist Avashi Cohen.

After the end of Return to Forever, Stanley Clarke switched to playing funk in a group with keyboardist George Duke, wrote movie scores, and only occasionally played jazz and fusion. Lenny White became a busy freelancer who was often heard in straight-ahead settings, although his own fusion records failed to catch on. In contrast, Al DiMeola had a major career as a leader. Early on he had the reputation of playing too many notes and relying on speed over substance, but he eventually matured into a versatile player who learned the value of space and dynamics. DiMeola’s interest in world music, particularly that of Latin America and Argentina, his ability to be distinctive on both electric and acousticguitars like John McLaughlin, and his brilliant technique have resulted in one stimulating project after another, keeping the legacy of fusion guitar alive.