Return to Forever - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

4/25/15, 4:45 PM

Return to Forever
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Return to Forever is a jazz fusion group founded and led by pianist Chick Corea. Through its
existence, the band has cycled through a number of different members, with the only consistent band
mate of Corea's being bassist Stanley Clarke. Along with Weather Report and Mahavishnu Orchestra,
Return to Forever is often cited as one of the core groups of the jazz-fusion movement of the 1970s.
Several musicians, including Clarke, Flora Purim, Airto Moreira and Al Di Meola, first came to
prominence through their performances on Return to Forever's albums.

Return to Forever

After playing on Miles Davis's groundbreaking jazz-fusion albums In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew,
Corea formed an avant-garde jazz band called Circle with Dave Holland, Anthony Braxton and Barry
Altschul. However in 1972, after having become a member of Scientology, Corea decided that he
wanted to better "communicate" with the audience. This essentially translated into his performing a
more popularly accessible style of music, since avant-garde jazz enjoyed a relatively small audience.
Return to Forever in Rochester, New York, 1976
Background information

Contents

Also known as Chick Corea

1 First group (19721973)

Origin

New York City, United States

2 Jazz rock era (19731976)

Genres

Jazz fusion

3 Final album (1977)

Years active

19721977, 1983, 2008, 2010

present

5 2011 tour

Labels

ECM, Columbia, Polydor

6 Discography

Website

www.return2forever.com
(http://www.return2forever.com)

Members

Chick Corea
Stanley Clarke
Lenny White
Frank Gambale
Jean-Luc Ponty

4 Reunion (2008)

6.1 Studio albums

6.2 Live releases
6.3 Collections
7 Personnel
7.1 Lineups
7.2 Timeline
8 References
9 External links

First group (19721973)

Past members Joe Farrell

Airto Moreira
Flora Purim
Bill Connors
Steve Gadd
Mingo Lewis
Earl Klugh
Al Di Meola

The first edition of Return to Forever performed primarily Latin-oriented music. This initial band
consisted of singer (and occasional percussionist) Flora Purim, her husband Airto Moreira (both
Gerry Brown
Brazilians) on drums and percussion, Corea's longtime musical co-worker Joe Farrell on saxophone and
Harold Garrett
flute, and the young Stanley Clarke on bass. Within this first line-up in particular, Clarke played acoustic
Gayle Moran
double bass in addition to electric bass. Corea's electric piano formed the basis of this group's sound.
James E. Pugh
Corea was yet to discover synthesizers, his trademark sound in the group's later years. Clarke and Farrell
John Thomas
were given ample solo space themselves. While Purim's vocals lent some commercial appeal to the
James Tinsley
music, many of their compositions were also instrumental and somewhat experimental in nature. The
Ron Moss
music was composed by Corea with the exception of the title track of the second album which was
written by Stanley Clarke. Lyrics were often written by Corea's friend Neville Potter, and were quite
often scientology themed- though this is not readily apparent to those not involved in Scientology itself. Clarke himself became involved in Scientology
through Corea, but eventually left the religion in the early 1980s.
Their first album, titled simply Return to Forever, was recorded for ECM Records in 1972 and was initially released only in Europe. This album featured
Corea's now famous compositions Crystal Silence and La Fiesta. Shortly afterwards, Corea, Airto, Clarke and Tony Williams formed the band for Stan
Getz's album Captain Marvel (1972), which featured Corea's compositions- including some from the first and second Return to Forever albums. Their
second album, Light as a Feather (1972), was released by Polydor and included the song, Spain, which also became quite well known.

Jazz rock era (19731976)

After the second album, Farrell, Purim and Moreira left the group to form their own band, and guitarist Bill Connors, drummer Steve Gadd and
percussionist Mingo Lewis were added. However, Gadd was unwilling to tour with the band and risk his job as an in-demand session drummer. Lenny
White (who had played with Corea in Miles Davis's band) replaced Gadd and Lewis on drums and percussion, and the group's third album, Hymn of the
Seventh Galaxy (1973), was then rerecorded (the first recording, featuring Gadd on drums, was never released and has since disappeared).

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The nature of the group's music had by now completely changed into jazz-rock, and had evolved into a similar vein as to that the Mahavishnu Orchestra,
Weather Report, and some progressive rock bands were also performing at the time. Their music was still relatively melodic, relying on strong themes, but
the traditional jazz element was by this time almost entirely absent- replaced by a more direct, rock oriented approach. Over-driven, distorted guitar had
also become prominent in the band's new sound, and Clarke had by then switched almost completely to electric bass guitar. A replacement on vocals was
not hired, and all the songs were now instrumentals. This change did not lead to a decrease in the band's
commercial fortunes however, Return to Forever's jazz rock albums instead found their way onto US pop
album charts.
In the Sept. 1988 "Down Beat Magazine" interview with Chick Corea by Josef Woodward, Josef says (page
19), "There is this general view ... that ... Miles [Davis] crystallized electric jazz fusion and that he sent his
emissaries out." Chick responds, "Nah, that's Disneyland. Miles is definitely a leader ... But there were other
things that occurred that I thought were equally as important. What John McLaughlin did with the electric
guitar set the world on its ear. No one ever heard an electric guitar played like that before, and it certainly
inspired me. ... John's band, more than my experience with Miles, led me to want to turn the volume up and
write music that was more dramatic and made your hair move."
http://www.cs.cf.ac.uk/Dave/mclaughlin/art/sheppard.html

L to R: Stanley Clarke, Al Di Meola, Chick

Corea, (Drummer Lenny White not visible).

While their second jazz rock album, Where Have I Known You Before, (1974) was similar in style to its
Return to Forever performing in 1974 at
immediate predecessor, Corea now played synthesizers in addition to electric keyboards (including piano),
Onondaga Community College in Syracuse,
and Clarke's playing had evolved considerably- now using flange and fuzz-tone effects, and with his now
New York.
signature style beginning to emerge. After Bill Connors left the band to concentrate on his solo career, the
group also hired new guitarists. Although Earl Klugh played guitar for some of the group's live
performances, he was soon replaced by the then 19-year-old guitar prodigy Al Di Meola, who had also played on the album recording sessions.

Their following album, No Mystery (1975), was recorded with the same line-up as "Where Have I Known You Before", but the style of music had become
more varied. The first side of the record consisted primarily of jazz-funk, while the second side featured Corea's acoustic title track and a long composition
with a strong Spanish influence. On this and the following album, each member of the group composed at least one of the tracks. No Mystery went on to
win the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Group.
The final album by this longest-lasting "classic" lineup of the group was Romantic Warrior (1976), which had by this time left Polydor for Columbia
Records. This album would go on to become the best selling of all Return to Forever's efforts, eventually reaching gold disc status. "Romantic Warrior"
continued their experiments in the realms of jazz-rock and related musical genres, and was lauded by critics for both the technically demanding style of its
compositions as well as for its accomplished musicianship.
After the release of Romantic Warrior and Return To Forever's subsequent tour in support (as well as having in addition signed a multi-million dollar
contract with CBS), Corea shocked Clarke by deciding to change the lineup of the group and to not include either White or Di Meola.[1]
In 1983 this lineup did, in fact, return briefly to the stage, but did not record a new album, and rather recorded only one track that was issued on Corea's
Touchstone album entitled "Compadres".

Final album (1977)

The final incarnation of Return to Forever featured a four piece horn section and Corea's wife Gayle singing vocals, but recorded only one studio album,
Musicmagic (1977).
In 1978, after issuing a live album of the tour for this album (a four-disc set), Return to Forever Live-the Complete Concert, Chick Corea officially
disbanded the group.[2]

Reunion (2008)
The classic Return to Forever line-up of Corea, Clarke, White, and Di Meola reunited for a tour of the United States that began in the summer of 2008. A
special Return to Forever anthology box-set, featuring remixed and digitally remastered tracks from the albums Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy, Where Have I
Known You Before, No Mystery, and Romantic Warrior, was released to coincide with the tour.[3] To date, no new material from the group has been
announced.[4]

2011 tour
From February 2011, the group commenced a world tour in Australia. Many dates on the nearly year-long tour included Dweezil Zappa's Zappa Plays
Zappa band as an opening act with Corea occasionally appearing in Zappa's band guesting on keyboards for a song or two, as well as Jean-Luc Ponty
performing some of the songs that he originally performed with Frank Zappa.[5]

Discography
Studio albums

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Return to Forever (1972, ECM)

Light as a Feather (1972, Polydor)
Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy (1973, Polydor)
Where Have I Known You Before (1974, Polydor)
No Mystery (1975, Polydor)
Romantic Warrior (1976, Columbia)
Musicmagic (1977, Columbia)
As Corea, Clarke & White
Forever (2011, Concord Records)

Live releases
Return to Forever, Live (1977 Columbia) / ...Live: The Complete Concert 4 Record Set (1978, Columbia)
Returns (2009, Eagle (Fontana))
The Mothership Returns (2012, Eagle (Fontana))

Collections
The Best of Return to Forever (1980) Sony (Columbia)
Return to the Seventh Galaxy: The Anthology (1996, Verve (Polydor))
This Is Jazz, Vol. 12 (1996, Sony (Columbia))
Return to Forever: The Anthology (2008, Concord)
Return to Forever: The Complete Columbia Albums Collection (2011, Sony)

Personnel
Current lineup
Chick Corea - keyboards (1972-1977, 1983, 2008, 2010-present)
Stanley Clarke - bass (1972-1977, 1983, 2008, 2010-present)
Lenny White - drums (1973-1976, 1983, 2008, 2010-present)
Frank Gambale - guitar (2010-present)
Jean-Luc Ponty - violin (2010-present)
Former members
Joe Farrell - saxophone (1972-1973, 1977; died 1986)

Gerry Brown - drums (1977)

Airto Moreira - percussion (1972-1973)

Harold Garrett - trombone (1977)

Flora Purim - vocals (1972-1973)

Gayle Moran - vocals, keyboards (1977)

Bill Connors - guitar (1973-1974)

James E. Pugh - trombone (1977)

Steve Gadd - drums (1973)

John Thomas - trumpet (1977)

Mingo Lewis - percussion (1973)

James Tinsley - trumpet (1977)

Earl Klugh - guitar (1974)

Ron Moss - trombone (1977)

Al Di Meola - guitar (1974-1976, 1983, 2008)

Lineups
19721973

1973

1973-1974

1974

Chick Corea keyboards

Chick Corea keyboards

Chick Corea keyboards

Chick Corea keyboards

Stanley Clarke double bass

Stanley Clarke bass

Stanley Clarke bass

Stanley Clarke bass

Joe Farrell saxophone

Bill Connors guitar

Bill Connors guitar

Lenny White drums

Airto Moreira percussion

Steve Gadd drums

Lenny White drums

Earl Klugh guitar

Flora Purim vocals

Mingo Lewis percussion

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19741977

1977

1977

Chick Corea keyboards

Chick Corea keyboards

Chick Corea keyboards

Stanley Clarke bass

Stanley Clarke bass

Stanley Clarke bass

Lenny White drums

Gerry Brown drums

Gerry Brown drums

Al Di Meola guitar

Joe Farrell saxophone

Joe Farrell saxophone

Harold Garrett trombone

Harold Garrett trombone

Gayle Moran vocals,

Gayle Moran vocals,

keyboards

keyboards

James E. Pugh trombone

James E. Pugh trombone

John Thomas trumpet

John Thomas trumpet

James Tinsley trumpet

James Tinsley trumpet

19771983
Disbanded

Ron Moss trombone

1983
Chick Corea keyboards

19832008
Disbanded

2008
Chick Corea keyboards

Stanley Clarke bass

Stanley Clarke bass

Al Di Meola guitar

Al Di Meola guitar

Lenny White drums

Lenny White drums

2008-2010
Disbanded

2010-present
Chick Corea keyboards
Stanley Clarke bass
Lenny White drums
Frank Gambale guitar
Jean-Luc Ponty violin

Timeline

References
1. Chick Corea left the group Return to Forever because of Scientology (http://www.religio.de/publik/arsreview/150996.html)

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2. Jazz Rock - A History, Stuart Nicholson, Schirmer Books, N.Y., 1998, p.375
3. Return to Forever reunites for 2008 trek (http://www.livedaily.com/news/13376.html)
4. Jim, Abbott. "Concert review: Return to Forever IV at House of Blues" (http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_music_blog/2011/09/concert-review-return-toforever-iv-at-house-of-blues.html). Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
5. "Return To Forever World Tour To Kick Off In Feb" (http://www.voxy.co.nz/entertainment/return-forever-world-tour-kick-feb/5/71799). Voxy.co.nz. November 14, 2010.
Retrieved 2011-07-06.

External links
Return to Forever (https://musicbrainz.org/artist/5f8cce81-1ff5-4cca-9c6e-8d3c58dc0c36) discography at
MusicBrainz
"In Conversation with Chick Corea" (http://www.jazz.com/features-and-interviews/2008/5/30/in-

Wikimedia Commons has

media related to Return to
Forever.

conversation-with-chick-corea) by Patrick Spurling, (Jazz.com (http://www.jazz.com))

"Return to Forever: Twelve Historic Tracks" (http://www.jazz.com/dozens/the-dozens-return-to-forever) by Walter Kolosky, (Jazz.com
(http://www.jazz.com))
Live 2011 Pescara (http://www.gianlucascerni.it/gallery/v/concerti/return2forever4/)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Return_to_Forever&oldid=648698605"
Categories: American jazz ensembles Jazz fusion ensembles Musical groups from New York Grammy Award-winning artists ECM Records artists
Polydor Records artists Columbia Records artists
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