I’ve been picking albums by Black artists this month in honor of Black History Month, but today I was compelled to break from that theme to acknowledge another tremendous loss to the music world, the legendary Chick Corea. His influence cannot be overstated and, though he did live to the ripe old age of 79, his death yesterday from cancer is yet another tragic loss to the international family of musicians. He was one of my favorite jazzmen, and his music evokes some incredibly impactful moments in my life. I had wanted to see him in concert for years, with many missed opportunities, until the opportunity finally presented itself, in August of 2017. He was on tour with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, another favorite of mine, and their stop an Los Angeles’ historic Wiltern Theater fell on the night before my wife’s due date with our first child. Somehow, I convinced her that we should go and she hauled herself up to some very uncomfortable seats in the balcony. I was so excited for it that she didn’t even make us leave early despite her eyes rolling back in her head at the jazz fusion jam session that was the unification of the two bands for the encore. Incidentally, she didn’t end up going into labor until four days later, giving me time to also squeeze in a Herbie Hancock show on what turned out to be the true night before baby.
New Album A Day 