Return to Forever (album)

Infobox Album |
Name = Return to Forever
Type = Album
Artist = Chick Corea / Return to Forever


Released = 1972
Recorded = February 2, February 3 1972
Genre = Jazz fusion, Latin Jazz, Post-bop
Length = 46:48
Label = ECM
Producer = Manfred Eicher
Reviews =
* Allmusic Rating|5|5 [http://wm11.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:wzfyxqygld6e link]
Last album =
This album = "Return to Forever"
(1972)
Next album = "Light as a Feather"
(1972)

"Return to Forever" is a jazz fusion album by Chick Corea, simultaneously functioning as the debut album by the band of the same name. Unlike later albums by the group, it was released by the ECM label and produced by Manfred Eicher. The album was not released in the USA until 1975. The record is often considered one of the classic albums in electric jazz.

At this stage Corea's approach to jazz fusion was very different compared to other early fusion artists. Adventurous electric piano solos are backed with South American oriented rhythms of drummer Airto Moreira and the vocals and percussion of his wife Flora Purim. Stanley Clarke is the bassist of the group (playing electric bass on A-side and double bass on B-side) and Joe Farrell plays flute and saxophone. This first line-up of Return to Forever consists of musicians (excluding Joe Farrell) that were also playing on Stan Getz's album "Captain Marvel" that was released in the same year.

The first track can be divided into five parts. There are three short parts in which Corea plays simple, haunting melodies with Purim doubling them with her voice. Between these three parts there are two longer parts in which the whole band plays. These main parts are both based on their own riffs. Farrell plays a flute solo over the first main part and Corea plays solo over the second. Moreira's drum pattern gives the composition an airy feeling of its own. Purim sings along with riffs, screaming a bit towards the end. The overall mood of the composition is mysterious.

The second track, "Crystal Silence", is Corea's song. It has lyrics but this time a vocalist is not used at all and the track is played just by Corea and Farrell with some silent percussion on a background. Farrell performs a long saxophone solo. Third track, "What Game Shall We Play Today?", is another of Corea's songs. It has a very affectionate melody and Purim singing vocals. Farrell plays now a flute. Corea and Farrell give short solos between the second and the third verse.

The B-side of the album has only one track which consists of three different pieces of music. Probably they have been recorded without breaks and this is the reason why they are not separated on three individual tracks. The first seven minutes of the track consist of an improvised introduction featuring Corea and Clark. After this section ends the piece makes a transition into Sometime Ago. It is a latin flavored piece with Purim's vocals and Farrell's flute solo. After that song Farrell switches to a saxophone and the band plays "La Fiesta" which is one of the Corea's jazz standards. Corea has written that most of Spanish songs deal about matters such as misery or torture but "La Fiesta", however, is about celebration. The song is an instrumental piece that relies on flamenco modes. Corea, Farrell and Clarke play all their own solos while Purim takes a percussionist's role.

Track listing

All tracks are composed by Corea (except a long improvisation before "Sometime Ago"). Lyrics by Neville Porter.
# "Return to Forever" – 12:06
# "Crystal Silence" – 6:59
# "What Game Shall We Play Today" – 4:30
# "Sometime Ago - La Fiesta" – 23:13

Personnel

*Chick Corea - Electric piano
*Stanley Clarke - Acoustic bass, electric bass
*Flora Purim - Vocals, percussion
*Joe Farrell - Flute, saxophone
*Airto Moreira - Drums