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HomeMusicJazzThe Anthology |
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 Return to Forever Today Nov 08, 2008
I owned the first two Return To Forever albums on vinyl back in the seventies when they first were released. I remember them as excellent and worth hearing. Like many people, I sold off my vinyl albums and switched to CDs when the technology went that direction. The Return to Forever music went into my rear view mirror until I bought this Anthology set.
The music sounds better than ever thanks to improved production of sound via the cleaned up sound via digital work. I was blown away by the better sound immediately. The crisp and clear quality of the music sounds like a brand new recording compared to the old vinyl albums played on the old needle-based technology. The quality of the sound is startling.
The music stands up to time and then some. This is some of the best original music of the original fusion wave. The intensity of the music makes your hair stand on end. Chick Corea and the other RTF members were dead serious and in their intent and ultimately effective in their delivery of intellectually stimulating and hard-hitting visceral sounds that really take your spirit and mind on a great ride. This is some of the best fusion jazz ever made, and some of the best fusion jazz you will ever hear.
I cannot consider the music of Chic Corea and Return to Forever without thinking of John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra. When I compare the two, Return to Forever is intellectual first and viscreal second, although the music is wonderful. Mahavishnu Orchestra is pure visceral and emotional fire that just rocks and drives along with an unbelievable intensity. The intensity is there with Return to Forever, but set to simmer rather than blaze.
If you love jazz from the original fusion era, you will love the Return to Forever Anthology. It is a blast from the past that is somehow timeless. Whether it is Louis Armstrong blowing New Orleans jazz in a smoky bar or Return to Forever blazing from a concert stage, the jazz tradition continues - now and forever.
Return to Forever's "Anthology" a return to virtuousity Sep 09, 2008
In the early to mid-1970s, I found that Return to Forever (RTF)was making some of the most exciting and innovative music of that time. "The Anthology" hearkens us back to that era, showing that most of the music holds up (i.e., more than 90 percent; some of the synthesizer work sounds dated, but that's a quibble). The most remarkable aspect of this compilation is how it allows ALL the members of RTF to shine: Al Dimeola's nimble facility on the guitar. Lenny White's muscular take on the drums, the most powerful percussion I have heard since Carl Palmer of Emerson, Lake, etc. We relearn what a prodigy we were witnessing in Stanley Clarke. And Chick Corea's inventive compositions seem as fresh as ever, while his mastery of the keyboards was never in doubt. I urge all fans of Return to Forever and jazz fusion to buy this album either to learn what all the excitement was about or remember that we were hearing greatness.
Best of the Best Sep 02, 2008
More Fusion then Jazz (which was what I thought it would be), and one of the best CD's I have in my collection.
If you like it motivating and a little hard you want this CD.
One of the best bands to ever walk the planet Sep 01, 2008
They may have not been the first fusion band to use the electric guitar as a lead instrument, but I think it's safe to say RTF was the best fusion band to come out of the post-Miles 70's era. Mahavishnu was great, but they never had the ensemble playing approach that RTF had. You can clearly hear it on this anthology. The solos are fierce, but they fit the concept of the song and not the other way around. One of the best things about this anthology (besides the price which is crazy) is that their two greatest albums are found on here in their entirety.
The remixing and the remastering is hard to fault, although as another reviewer pointed out the familiar studio enhanced ending to "Vulcan Worlds" is missing. Something as little as that can be jarring after you've heard the tune a certain way for over thirty years. However, I've never heard the remainder of the Polydor songs ever sound as good as what's found on here. You can hear Lenny White in all his power and swing like never before. For what it's worth, I prefer the Romantic Warrior album mix found on this collection too......and I never thought I'd be saying that when I first listened to it. It sounds more live and immediate here than on any other previous versions.
Opinions vary and those are mine. You really can't do much better than this for a comprehensive, sonically brilliant collection of the electric Return to Forever. They really were the best of the best.
I only hope that their re-union success this year leads to more music, either new or from Chicks' archives.
Vintage jazz Aug 30, 2008
If you loved them in their early days, this will be more good stuff at their best.
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