Light As A Feather
	Produced by Chick Corea
	Released on 1973
	US JAZZ CHART POSITION #6
	Find it at GEMM
PD-552 cover (shrinkwrapped) [high resolution scan]

K RONOMYTH 10.0: THE FIRST PHOENIX RISES, RETURNS. There is, first of all, some heavy Rhodes work ahead of you, all of it under the bright heat of The Sun tarot, where wah-wah petals bloom and breathe, and exotic flora draws the fluted bill of hornbirds (farrell prized for their feathers), darting between tiny flecks of buzz and trill in the moving Air to which the thick kerplunk of bubblebees in silky grottoes do attend, a rich stew of ebullient bass. This sambient air buoys the second ride of the Phoenix, which has caught many a critic’s accolades in its currents. With Corea as its marvelous captain, RTF dances in the dappled sunlight of this new world, as animated exotica moves in dreamy sambanambulance and tiny eruptions of hardened jazz rumble harmlessly through the forest. 500 miles high, the Phoenix soars, light as a feather. It reappears as a dream-image in a child’s mind, carrying only the persistent tick-tock of a clock from the workaday world. It winds through the lively streets of Spain as a spirit, beckoned by the bacchanal of the living. There are the light and lithe rhythms of Airto Moreira, the airy vocals of Flora Purim, the refreshing flute and heated hornwork of Joe Farrell, and the Phoenix would soon find itself light these few original feathers. Then there is the stunning complexity of structure evident in Stanley Clarke’s electric, acoustic and bowed basswork and, greater than all that, the colossal Rhodes of Chick Corea. The captain plays the Rhodes like a lead guitar sometimes, hammering out notes in quick staccato stabs or bending the notes with his wah-wah pedal. Rarely has the instrument sounded so free and expressive, so timeless and beautiful. Light As A Feather is a different animal than the ferocious beast that RTF would later become. Here it’s all sunlight, warmth, bathed in beauty, using its superlative playing as a buttress to support an airier, lighter creation that fuses samba and electric jazz into something exciting and adventurous.

TRACK LISTING

1. YOU'RE EVERYTHING    (Music: Chick Corea, Lyrics: Neville Potter)    5:10
2. LIGHT AS A FEATHER    (Music: Stanley Clarke, Lyrics: Flora Purim)    10:53
3. CAPTAIN MARVEL    (Music: Chick Corea)    4:52
4. 500 MILES HIGH    (Music: Chick Corea, Lyrics: Neville Potter)    9:06
5. CHILDREN'S SONG    (Music: Chick Corea)    2:48
6. SPAIN    (Music: Chick Corea)    9:50
   
   2-CD reissue bonus tracks
   
7. MATRIX
8. LIGHT AS A FEATHER (ALTERNATIVE TAKE)
9. 500 MILES HIGH (ALTERNATIVE TAKE)
10. CHILDREN'S SONG (ALTERNATIVE TAKE)
11. SPAIN (COMPOSITE ALTERNATIVE TAKE)
12. SPAIN (ALTERNATIVE TAKE)
13. WHAT GAMES SHALL WE PLAY TODAY?
14. WHAT GAMES SHALL WE PLAY TODAY? (ALTERNATIVE TAKE 1)
15. WHAT GAMES SHALL WE PLAY TODAY? (ALTERNATIVE TAKE 2)
16. WHAT GAMES SHALL WE PLAY TODAY? (ALTERNATIVE TAKE 3)

CREDITS

STANLEY CLARKE --
CHICK COREA --
JOE FARRELL --
AIRTO MOREIRA --
FLORA PURIM --
Hugh Jones -- engineer
Richard Manwaring -- engineer
Hamish Grimes -- design & colour photography

return to RETURN TO FOREVER discography

SUGGESTED SURFING

In my pursuit of Rhodes (as in Fender) scholarship, specifically in pursuit of the wah wah effects used on Light as a Feather, I came across www.FenderRhodes.com. Whether you play the Fender Rhodes or just love the sound of it, this is one site for sore eyes. Lots of great stuff here, including effects (with audio samples), parts and yes even reviews.

For more discographies visit...

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