Chick Corea (1941-2021)

Chick Corea arrived in New York 1959 and within a few years recorded under his own name, releasing Tones for Joan's Bones prior to going on tour with Stan Getz. Working on Miles Davis' 1968 album Filles de Kilimanjaro proved pivotal. Within months Corea was playing stadium gigs with Davis following the release of In a Silent Way and the unprecedented commercial success of Bitches Brew.

In the early seventies Corea recorded with Gary Burton on the then fledgling ECM label and formed super group Return to Forever. During the eighties Corea's Elektric and Akoustic bands toured the world as the composer-pianist continued to work with many of the emerging names on the scene including Kenny Garrett, Joshua Redman and Wallace Roney. 

In 2010 Corea was inducted in to Downbeat magazine's Readers' Hall of Fame and during a long career amassed 23 Grammy awards. Spain, La Fiesta, 500 Miles High and Windows have become modern standards and can be heard being performed by musicians across the globe in concert performances and jam sessions. A statement on Chick Corea's Facebook page reads: Through his body of work and the decades he spent touring the world, he touched and inspired the lives of millions.

Armando Anthony 'Chick' Corea b. 12 June 1941, d. 9 February 2021  

Russell