Where Have I Known You Before is a studio album by Return to Forever, the first featuring guitarist Al Di Meola, and the second since leader Chick Corea switched to mostly electric instrumentation, playing music heavily influenced by progressive rock, funk and classical. [citation needed]
| Where Have I Known You Before | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 1974 | |||
| Recorded | July–August 1974 | |||
| Studio | Record Plant Studios, New York City | |||
| Genre | Jazz fusion | |||
| Length | 41:27 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer | Chick Corea | |||
| Return to Forever chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Chick Corea chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Sputnikmusic |  [2] |
| The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | [3] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings | [4] |
Background, instrumentation, compositions
editAlthough Return to Forever's style remained unchanged since its previous album, Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy (1973), important changes took place in the band's sound and line-up. Chick Corea started to use synthesizers, such as the Minimoog and ARP Odyssey. An equally important change was the replacement of guitarist Bill Connors with 19-year-old Al Di Meola.[5] Connors left the band before the recording of this album to concentrate on his acoustic solo career. Another reason for his departure was his reluctance to travel; he preferred to stay in the San Francisco area. Also, Bill was not happy with Chick pushing certain aspects of Scientology on him.[6][7]
Between the album's longer tracks are three of Corea's short piano improvisations that all bore a title beginning with "Where Have I...".[8]
The first track is Stanley Clarke's "Vulcan Worlds" with melodic motifs that appear on Clarke's second solo album Stanley Clarke, also released in 1974. The song shows Clarke is "one of the fastest and most facile electric bassists around".[8] Each player except for drummer Lenny White took long solos.
The next long track is Lenny White's composition "The Shadow of Lo", a piece with many changes in mood. The last track on Side A is Corea's "Beyond the Seventh Galaxy", a sequel to his "Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy", the title track from the group's previous album. Side B begins with the collective jam "Earth Juice". Most of Side B is taken up by Corea's 14-minute epic "Song to the Pharaoh Kings", a song notable for its use of the harmonic minor scale.[9] The track has a long keyboard introduction, after which Chick Corea is joined by the full band, and an "Eastern" theme appears. Each member of the band plays a long solo.
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Chick Corea except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Vulcan Worlds" | Stanley Clarke | 7:51 |
| 2. | "Where Have I Loved You Before?" | 1:02 | |
| 3. | "The Shadow of Lo" | Lenny White | 7:32 |
| 4. | "Where Have I Danced with You Before?" | 1:14 | |
| 5. | "Beyond the Seventh Galaxy" | 3:13 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Earth Juice" | Corea, Clarke, White, Al Di Meola | 3:46 |
| 7. | "Where Have I Known You Before?" | 2:20 | |
| 8. | "Song to the Pharaoh Kings" | 14:21 | |
| Total length: | 41:27 | ||
Personnel
editMusicians
- Chick Corea – acoustic piano, Fender Rhodes electric piano, Hohner clavinet, Yamaha electric organ, synthesizers (ARP Odyssey, Minimoog), percussion
- Al Di Meola – electric guitar, acoustic twelve-string guitar
- Stanley Clarke – electric bass guitar, Yamaha electric organ, bell tree, chimes
- Lenny White – drums, congas, bongos, percussion
Production
- Shelly Yakus – engineer
- Tom Rabstenek – mastering
- Herb Dreiwitz – front cover photography
Chart performance
edit| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Billboard 200 | 32[10] |
| 1975 | Billboard Jazz Albums | 5[10] |
References
edit- ^ Yanow, Scott. "Return to Forever - Where Have I Known You Before (1974) album review | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
- ^ Campbell, Hernan M. (1 November 2012). "Return to Forever - Where Have I Known You Before (1974) album review | Sputnikmusic". sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
- ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. US: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 50. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
- ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 304. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
- ^ Cooke, Mervyn; Horn, David (2002). The Cambridge Companion to Jazz. Cambridge Companions to Music. Cambridge UP. p. 228. ISBN 9780521663885. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
- ^ Goodall, Mark (2013). Gathering of the Tribe: Music and Heavy Conscious Creation. Headpress.
- ^ Bivins, Jason (2015). Spirits Rejoice! Jazz and American Religion. Oxford University Press. p. 52.
- ^ a b Martin, Henry; Waters, Keith (2010). Jazz: The First 100 Years, 3rd ed: The First 100 Years. Cengage. p. 335. ISBN 9781439083338. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
- ^ Bufe, Charles (1994). An Understandable Guide to Music Theory: The Most Useful Aspects of Theory for Rock, Jazz & Blues Musicians. See Sharp. p. 6. ISBN 9781884365003.
- ^ a b "Return to Forever - Where Have I Known You Before (1974) album review | Awards | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
External links
edit- Return to Forever - Where Have I Known You Before (1974) album review by Scott Yanow, credits & releases at AllMusic
- Return to Forever - Where Have I Known You Before (1974) album releases & credits at Discogs
- Return to Forever - Where Have I Known You Before (1974) album credits & user reviews at ProgArchives.com
- Return to Forever - Where Have I Known You Before (1974) album to be listened as stream on Spotify