Return to Forever - Music Magic (CD)

This surprising turnabout must have surprised many Return to Forever fans in 1977. The sound is remarkably more orchestral than anything the group had previously done, with a heavy dose of vocal leads and vamps that veer close to pop territories and, most surprisingly, solos on primarily acoustic instruments. Again recorded at the Caribou Ranch in Colorado in January and February 1977, Musicmagic seems to celebrate the pure joy of music with contributions from Corea (“The Musician”), Moran (the existential jazz ballad “Do You Ever”), Corea and Moran together (“Musicmagic,” and the most typically RTF-sounding piece here, “The Endless Night”) and Clarke (“Hello Again” and the album’s single greatest moment, “So Long Mickey Mouse,” offering particularly great spots for Farrell’s flute and soprano, Corea’s keyboard kaleidoscope and Clarke’s entrancing bass-ics).

— AllAboutJazz