Corea Extends 75th Birthday World Tour, Announces New Dates

By DownBeat I Aug. 31, 2016

Chick Corea will celebrate his 75th birthday year with a tour of the U.S., Europe and Asia, culminating in an 80-day residency at the Blue Note in New York.
(Photo: Stephanie Shacter)

For his 75th birthday, pianist Chick Corea has chosen to return to one of his favorite places: the road. The DownBeat Hall of Famer, who observed the milestone birthday in July, is adding additional dates to his celebratory world tour, which will culminate with a two-month residency at the Blue Note jazz club in New York City from Oct. 19–Dec. 12.

For Corea, the additional dates extend a globe-spanning tour that began in April, when the pianist performed at the International Jazz Day concert on The White House lawn in Washington, D.C. That performance was followed by an East Coast duo tour with banjo player B&eacutela Fleck, and then a month of shows in Japan with fellow pianist Makoto Ozone, including two nights with the NHK Orchestra.

July brought European concerts with the all-star “Homage to Heroes” quintet, featuring trumpeter Wallace Roney, saxophonist Kenny Garrett, bassist Christian McBride and drummer Marcus Gilmore.

In August, the Chick Corea Elektric Band—featuring drummer Dave Weckl, bassist John Patitucci, saxophonist Eric Marienthal and guitarist Frank Gambale—appeared at the iconic Catalina Club in Los Angeles for 14 sold-out shows across seven nights. The Elektric Band will reconvene for a handful of U.S. dates in October (including an Oct. 14 show in Nashville and an Oct. 16 concert in Boston) right before Corea’s residency at the Blue Note begins in New York.

In September, Corea will travel to Europe with vibraphonist and longtime duo partner Gary Burton, appearing at La Villette Jazz Festival in Paris. The pianist will also reconnect with bassist Avishai Cohen and Gilmore for appearances in Israel and Russia. That same trio will headline the grand opening of Blue Note’s Beijing venue on Sept. 13, and bassist Eddie Gomez will join Corea and drummer Brian Blade for a residency at the Blue Note Hawaii (Sep. 21–24) and the San Francisco Jazz Festival (Sep. 29–Oct. 2).

Back in New York City, the Blue Note residency (Oct. 19–Dec. 12) finds the pianist appearing in 80 shows with 60 musicians playing in 15 bands. Themes for the residency include a tribute to Miles Davis; a week with drum legend Steve Gadd; two nights of experimental electronica with drummer Gilmore and guests; and the return of Flamenco Heart.

Upcoming projects with Origin, The Harlem String Quartet and the 15-piece Trodheim Jazz Orchestra have also been scheduled, as has a three-night series of duets with pianists yet to be announced.

The final two weeks of the run will feature the music of Corea’s fusion band Return to Forever in acoustic and electric settings. The acoustic lineup (Nov. 30–Dec. 4) includes saxophonist Ravi Coltrane, flutist Hubert Laws, bassist Cohen and original Return to Forever drummer Lenny White. The electric band (Dec. 8–11), dubbed Return to Forever Meets Mahavishnu, will feature guitarist John McLaughlin, bassist Victor Wooten and drummer White.

For details on Corea’s tour, visit chickcorea.com.

For more info on Corea’s 80-day Blue Note residency, click here.