Return to Forever IV: Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Lenny White, Jean-Luc Ponty, and Frank Gamble. Zappa Plays Zappa. Chick Corea actually shook my hand!

The Midland Theatre, KCMO

Return to Forever is a jazz fusion group founded and led by keyboardist Chick Corea. Through its existence, the band has cycled through a number of different members, with the only consistent band mate of Corea’s being bassist Stanley Clarke. Along with Weather Report and Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever is often cited as one of the core groups of the jazz-fusion movement of the 1970s. Several musicians, including Clarke, Flora Purim, Airto Moreira and Al Di Meola, first came to prominence through their performances on Return to Forever’s albums.