At the end of 2005, keyboardist Chick Corea’s record label sent out advance copies of his new CD, “The Ultimate Adventure.” Accompanying the disc was a note from Corea to journalists proclaiming it to be his “best recording ever.” Considering that he has been releasing music under his own name for 40 years, some of it innovative, it was a surprising statement.
“I know it’s a bold claim,” the jocular Corea told me recently. “It’s a long bunch of wonderful reasons why. Each time I do a new project, I try to do something extra challenging for myself, my band and the audience. And with ‘The Ultimate Adventure,’ I wrote musical portraits of great literature.”
The compositions on the disc were inspired from a book by the late L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Church of Scientology and a major creative influence on Corea going back to an early stage in his career.
“I thought the backdrop of the Arabian Knights (taken from the book ‘The Ultimate Adventure’) fit the band called Touchstone,” Corea said. He and Touchstone, one of numerous musical projects dedicated to showcasing his pyrotechnics, bring their multilayered fusion to the Boulder Theater on March 10.
“The inspiration that comes from Hubbard’s writing, plus the fact that particular band has me delving deeper into southern Spain and Arabic influences in the music … I’m just buzzed about it.”
Devotees of Corea’s slickly rendered yet cerebral jazz will find much to like about “The Ultimate Adventure,” which displays his ever-dazzling chops in communion with like-minded players. It’s often flashy music, and undoubtedly entertaining for those who remember the glory days of fusion when Corea headed up the fondly remembered group Return to Forever in the ’70s.
In many ways, the new disc is a summation of Corea’s career to date. At 64, his technique on piano and synthesizer remains undiluted, a point driven home by the recent release of a jaw-dropping 10-DVD box of live performances that showcases his various approaches to jazz and cements his place in the music’s history.
“That was a three-week celebration,” Corea said of the concerts documented in the box. “I don’t like to look back on what I’ve done. It was a simple idea, a birthday celebration, and the response from everyone was so immediate (musicians from all facets of Corea’s career were involved). Everything went down so casually.”
Chick Corea and Touchstone, 7 p.m. March 10, at the Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St. Tickets are priced from $32.50-42.50. Call 303-786-7030.
Set list
Tonight, Dixieland group the Otones head up a celebration of “Blues, Gospel, Jazz and Ragtime” at Denver’s Church of the Blessed Sacrament, 4900 E. Montview Blvd. Call 720-937-9436. … Trombonist Conrad Herwig and trumpeter Brian Lynch present their “Latin Side of John Coltrane” project at the Mount Vernon Country Club Thursday evening. … The Gypsy Swing Revue takes to the stage of Dazzle Thursday. … Lynn Skinner sings at the Rock ‘N’ Soul Café in Boulder on Friday. … On Saturday, bassist Ken Walker’s quartet plays the Robusto Room. …
Guitarist Earl Klugh’s Weekend of Jazz at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs happens March 10-11, featuring performances by Patti Austin, Michael Franks, “King of the Hill” fixture Chuck Mangione and Denver’s Nelson Rangell. …
Farewell to the Latin jazz percussion master Ray Barretto, who died Feb. 17 at 76. A deserving Grammy recipient whose congas reverberated through countless sessions, his playing was top-flight to the end, as evidenced by the recent “Time Was-Time Is” disc. I’ve always been partial to 1968’s faddish boogaloo album titled “Acid.” I put it on in memory of the great man and it sounded appropriately groovy indeed.
Bret Saunders’ column on jazz appears every other Sunday in A&E. Saunders is host of the “KBCO Morning Show,” 5:30-10 a.m. weekdays at 97.3-FM. E-mail him at bret_saunders@hotmail.com.
