Release date: January 1977
Label: Columbia Records
Production: Return to Forever
Length: 41:51
Genre: jazz rock fusion
Rating: 6/10
American jazz rock fusion pioneers Return to Forever, led by keyboard grandmaster Chick Corea, hit their creative and commercial peak with the album “Romantic Warrior” (1976). But instead of building on that success, Corea tore down the winning, best-ever incarnation of the band, which at its peak featured guitar virtuoso Al Di Meola and drummer Lenny White, and rebuilt it around himself, bass genius Stanley Clarke, returning member Joe Farrell on sax and flute, his wife, vocalist Gayle Moran, and a big band horn section as backing.
The result of this odd combination was Return to Forever’s last studio effort, “Musicmagic,” which seriously let down every fan of the Di Meola/White era, since it was a long way from the eclectic playfulness and innovation of their best albums. For the first time since “Light as Feather” (1972), Corea brought vocals back into the band, handled by his better half Moran and occasionally by his Scientology buddy Clarke, who still managed to wow more than once with solo flourishes on electric and acoustic bass. Meanwhile, with the guitar gone and a horn section added, some of the tracks had more in common with classic, thoroughly commercial big band jazz than with jazz rock fusion.
You can find a bit more of that old playfulness only on the title track, which has some good solo spots on bass and keyboards, but soon dissolves into a pretty syrupy vocal duet between Moran and Clarke. There’s even more of that on “So Long Mickey Mouse,” which could pass for ‘lunch jazz’ background music in some Disneyland fast-food dining hall, while “The Endless Night” sounds a lot like some of Corea’s solo work from this period, especially the albums “My Spanish Heart” (1976) and “The Mad Hatter” (1978). The dividing line between his solo career and Return to Forever had really gotten razor-thin by then.
“Musicmagic,” the final studio act of the cult jazz fusionists, faded into obscurity fast, thanks to its thoroughly commercial feel and a complete lack of experimental playfulness, even though all six tracks on the album were once again played at a world-class level. Corea and Clarke were still in a league of their own on their instruments, but as songwriters they were completely spent, and the orchestral backing didn’t produce the best results either. Moran, a very solid singer otherwise, didn’t prove herself a top-notch composer, even though Corea kept pushing her forward in that role too. In fact, it was no big surprise when Corea disbanded Return to Forever after the “Musicmagic” tour, since there was no real point in carrying on with a outfit that had little in common with the best days of this legendary jazz rock fusion band.
Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Tracklist:
1.The Musician (7:12)
2.Hello Again (3:49)
3.Musicmagic (11:00)
4.So Long Mickey Mouse (6:09)
5.Do You Ever (3:59)
6.The Endless Night (9:41)
Return to Forever:
Chick Corea – keyboards, synthesizer
Stanley Clarke – electric bass guitar, acoustic bass guitar, vocals
Gayle Moran – vocals, piano, organ
Joe Farrell – saxophone, flute
James Tinsley – trumpet, piccolo
John Thomas – trumpet, horn
Harold Garret – trombone
James E. Pugh – trombone
Gerry Brown – drums
