Yahoo LAUNCHCAST Song Of The Day-Return To Forever

Artist:Return To Forever
Song:Sorceress
Album:Romantic Warrior




The 1976 album Romantic Warrior was the best selling album by jazz pianist Chick Corea's fusion group Return To Forever featuring his best known lineup. Like Weather Report & The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return To Forever emerged from the popularity of Miles Davis' jazz rock fusion experiments. The mid-70s version of Return To Forever was likely influenced by the success of those two bands in addition to the popularity of British progressive rock bands. Corea started Return To Forever while he was working with Stan Getz in 1971 with Stanley Clarke on bass, Joe Farrell on sax and the husband wife team of Airto Moreira on percussion and Flora Purim on vocals. They started playing dates in late 1971 and signed a record deal with the German label ECM Records. They were on Polydor in the US. Return To Forever was the first song Corea wrote for the group and it became the name of the group. The first couple of albums were more jazz than rock. After the 1973 album Light As A Feather, Farrell, Airto & Flora left to start their own group. Corea brought in guitarist Bill Conners and session drummer Steve Gadd. Gadd didn't want to tour so he was replaced by Lenny White. He had played with Corea in the Davis band. Their third album Hymn Of The Seventh Galaxy went in a more mainstream rock direction. By 1975, Connors didn't like the direction the group was going in and left. He said Corea & Clarke's interest in Scientology was overtaking the band. He was replaced by 19 year old guitarist Al Di Meola. Return To Forever signed a big contract with Columbia Records for the 1976 album Romantic Warrior. It went gold and would be their most successful record. Lenny White wrote the great fusion song Sorceress. Then White & DiMeola left. Corea brought in his singer wife Gayle Moran and some horns and recorded the final RTF album Musicmagic in 1977. Corea disbanded Return To Forever apparently because Stanley Clarke left Scientology. All four members have had significant solo careers and Return To Forever reunited in 2008 and are currently touring. According to Lenny White, an album is in the works. Here's Return To Forever performing Sorceress on The Old Grey Whistle Test in 1976.