Musicians
Related: About this forumChick Corea, Jazz Fusion pioneer, dies at 79
Keyboardist-composer Chick Corea, who attained stardom as a fusion pioneer and distinguished himself as a do-anything player across the jazz spectrum and beyond, died Tuesday from a rare form of cancer, his Facebook page announced. He was 79.
Born Armando Corea in Chelsea, MA, he rose to prominence as a sideman in Miles Davis groundbreaking electric bands of the late 60s.
Corea later co-founded the avant garde unit Circle before becoming a commercial force in his own right with the stormy 70s fusion group Return to Forever.
He also distinguished himself in duo performances with pianist Herbie Hancock and vibraphonist Gary Burton; led his own Elektric Band and Akoustic Band - and ventured into contemporary classic music at the turn of the millennium.
He founded the all-star unit the 5 Peace Band with another Davis sideman, guitarist John McLaughlin, in 2008.
A prolific record-maker with nearly 90 albums as a leader or co-leader to his credit, Corea racked up a staggering 22 Grammy Awards (and a total of 63 nominations) and three Latin Grammys. He was named a National Endowment of the Arts Jazz Master in 2006.
At: https://variety.com/2021/music/news/chick-corea-dead-jazz-fusion-pioneer-1234906551/
Jazz pianist and composer Chick Corea, 1941-2021, performing his 1980 hit Spain.
It is my hope that those who have an inkling to play, write, perform or otherwise, do so. If not for yourself then for the rest of us. Its not only that the world needs more artists, its also just a lot of fun.
MuseRider
(34,368 posts)I saw him in a small venue with Flora Purim and I seem to recall it was the early Return To Forever but I cannot say for certain. It was in the early to mid 70's.
redstateblues
(10,565 posts)Alacritous Crier
(4,172 posts)dhill926
(16,953 posts)bif
(24,000 posts)Saw Chick many times over the years. Absolute one of a kind.
ProfessorGAC
(69,882 posts)Chick is in my top 5 jazz piano players.
And, his fusion work was groundbreaking with RTF.