---

Over the lifespan of Return to Forever, the band existed in three different formats: a quintet that recorded two albums (1972–73), an electric quartet that delivered four discs (1973–76) and an expanded ensemble that included a four-piece brass section and a vocalist, which recorded a studio and a live album (1977).

The following discography will focus on the keyboard/guitar/bass/drums quartet years, considered to be the classic RTF lineup—the most popular and successful version of the group.

---

Romantic Warrior (1976 Columbia -- Corea, Clarke, Di Meola, White)
	1. Medieval Overture
	2. Sorceress
	3. The Romantic Warrior
	4. Majestic Dance
	5. The Magician
	6. Duel of the Jester and the Tyrant, Pts. 1 & 2

Album Notes (CDUniverse.com) -- By the time Return to Forever's Romantic Warrior lineup coalesced, the group was very much a partnership between all four members. By 1976, with increased reliance on Corea's banks of analog synthesizers and Al Dimeola's searing electric guitar, the quartet had arrived at a musical crossroads that was more closely aligned with 'progressive' ensembles of the day like Hands or Happy The Man than with real rockers or jazzmen. This undefined netherworld marked the point of delineation between 'jazz-rock' a la '70s Miles and the less definable 'fusion.'

The compositions, contributed by all four members, feature death-defying time changes and fleet-fingered riffs that would mark the downfall of lesser men. The facility displayed by Corea, DiMeola, and bassist Stanley Clarke is astounding, as they rip through counterpoint and unison lines, spitting out sixteenth-notes like bubblegum. Drummer Lenny White is a polyrhythmic wonder, making all the bizarre, unconventional shifts sound completely organic. As on his '70s solo albums, DiMeola offers the liquid, rapid-fire solos that would inspire a generation of fusion guitarists, while Corea's nimble lead synthesizer work gives Mahavishnu-era Jan Hammer (obviously an inspiration) a run for his money.

To hear more from Romantic Warrior, check out the RTF Radio!

---

No Mystery (1975 Polydor -- Corea, Clarke, Di Meola, White)
	1. Dayride
	2. Jungle Waterfall
	3. Flight of the Newborn
	4. Sofistifunk
	5. Excerpt from the First Movement of Heavy Metal
	6. No Mystery
	7. Interplay
	8. Celebration Suite, Pt. 1
	9. Celebration Suite, Pt. 2

Album Notes (CDUniverse.com) -- No Mystery sees Return to Forever experimenting with funk and heavy-hitting rock. "Sofistifunk" is a great example of the former. On this track, drummer Lenny White lays down a fat dance groove. However, to offset this, keyboardist Chick Corea and guitarist Al DiMeola create an abstract musical dialogue between synthesizers and fuzz guitar.

"Excerpt from the First Movement of Heavy Metal" is the best example of the band's explorative, hard-rocking side. This piece opens and closes with a tongue-in-cheek 'classical' piano introduction. In between, DiMeola, White, and bassist Stanley Clarke engage in an over-the-top, no-holds-barred jam. The title track is the jazziest of all the songs here. This sensitive, Latin-influenced composition contains many beautiful passages as well as a number of sudden melodic deviations. Overall, this piece really shows off Corea's distinctive compositional style, which borrows not only from Cuban music and post-bop jazz, but also from the Spanish guitar tradition. Certainly, DiMeola--who is known for his love of flamenco music--had an influence on this musical direction as well.

To hear more from No Mystery, check out the RTF Radio!

---

Where Have I Known You Before (1974 Polydor -- Corea, Clarke, Di Meola, White)
	1. Vulcan Worlds
	2. Where Have I Loved You Before?
	3. The Shadow of Lo
	4. Where Have I Danced With You Before?
	5. Beyond the Seventh Galaxy
	6. Earth Juice
	7. Where Have I Known You Before?
	8. Song to the Pharoah Kings

Album Notes (CDUniverse.com) -- This classic, cookin' fusion record from the heyday of the genre still sounds exciting today. Keyboardist Chick Corea leads his band on an intergalactic cruise into the void where rock and jazz meet in an explosive big bang. Playing with sci-fi imagery, Corea, bassist Stanley Clarke, drummer Lenny White, and guitarist Al DiMeola know how to trip the light fantastic.

White's searching "The Shadow of Lo" lets DiMeola riff with velvety guitars around Corea's sunny keys. On the closing space/jazz tug of war "Song to the Pharaoh Kings," Corea's synths pop like subatomic nuclei, while White lays down a frenzied star storm of clashing cymbals and ringing snares, and DiMeola and Clarke's strings wrap themselves around each other with impressive skill.

To hear more from Where Have I Known You Before, check out the RTF Radio!

---

Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy (1973 Polydor -- Corea, Clarke, Connors, White)
	1. Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy
	2. After the Cosmic Rain
	3. Captain Señor Mouse
	4. Theme to the Mothership
	5. Space Circus, Pts. 1 & 2
	6. The Game Maker

Album Notes (CDUniverse.com) -- Its hyper speed momentum aside, shares many of the characteristics of prog rock: flashy playing, incredibly complex instrumental passages and arrangements, awry and tangled time signatures, and a propensity towards raw energy intermingled with electronics. Everyone here plays as if there were no tomorrow.

Chick Corea's supercharged electric piano and organ licks alternate between fire-breathing tone clusters and atmospheric grace. Guitarist Bill Connors plays like a comet circling a supernova; Stanley Clarke's earthquake-inducing bass lines are both monstrous and finger-poppin' funky, while drummer Lenny White simply beats his kit to jelly. Feel the power: the protoplasmic funk of "After the Cosmic Rain," the Fender Rhodes symphonies and ecstatic drumming of "Captain Señor Mouse," the far-out space-bop of the title track. Super hot stuff from one of jazz-rock's cornerstones.

To hear more from Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy, check out the RTF Radio!

---

Musicmagic (1977 Columbia -- Corea, Clarke, Moran, Farrell, Pugh, Thomas, Tinsley, Garrett, Brown)
	1. The Musician
	2. Hello Again
	3. Music Magic
	4. So Long Mickey Mouse
	5. Do You Ever
	6. The Endless Night

Light as a Feather (1972 Polydor -- Corea, Clarke, Purim, Farrell, Moreira)
	1. You're Everything
	2. Light as a Feather
	3. Captain Marvel
	4. 500 Miles High
	5. Children's Song
	6. Spain

Return To Forever (1972 ECM -- Corea, Clarke, Purim, Farrell, Moreira)
	1. Return To Forever
	2. Crystal Silence
	3. What Game Shall We Play Today
	4. Sometime Ago - La Fiesta

---

This Is Jazz, Vol. 12
1996

	1. Romantic Warrior
	2. Sorceress
	3. Music Magic
	4. So Long Mickey Mouse
	5. On Green Dolphin Street

The Best of Return to Forever
1985

	1. The Musician
	2. The Romantic Warrior
	3. So Long Mickey Mouse
	4. Majestic Dance
	5. Music Magic
	6. Hello Again
	7. Sorceress

Return to the Seventh Galaxy: The Anthology
1972

	1. 500 Miles High
	2. Captain Marvel
	3. Light as a Feather
	4. Spain [Live]
	5. After the Cosmic Rain [Live]
	6. Bass Folk Song [Live]
	7. Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy
	8. Captain Señor Mouse
	9. Theme to the Mothership
	10. Vulcan Worlds
	11. Beyond the Seventh Galaxy
	12. Earth Juice
	13. The Shadow of Lo [Live]
	14. Where Have I Known You Before?
	15. Song to the Pharoah Kings
	16. Dayride
	17. No Mystery
	18. Flight of the Newborn
	19. Celebration Suite, Pts. 1 & 2

---

The Ultimate Adventure
2006

	1.Three Ghouls -- Part 1
	2. Three Ghouls -- Part 2
	3. Three Ghouls -- Part 3
	4. City Of Brass
	5. Queen Tedmur
	6. El Stephen -- Part 1
	7. El Stephen -- Part 2
	8. King & Queen
	9. Moseb The Executioner -- Part 1
	10. Moseb The Executioner -- Part 2
	11. Moseb The Executioner -- Part 3
	12. North Africa
	13. Flight From Karoof -- Part 1
	14. Flight From Karoof -- Part 2
	15. Planes Of Existence -- Part 1
	16. Arabian Nights -- Part 1
	17. Arabian Nights -- Part 2
	18. Gods And Devils
	19. Planes Of Existence -- Part 2

The Leprechaun
1974

	1. Imp's Welcome
	2. Lenore
	3. Reverie
	4. Looking At The World
	5. Night Sprite
	6. Soft And Gentle
	7. Pixieland Rag
	8. Leprechaun's Dream

For Chick’s complete discography visit ChickCorea.com

---

Toys of Men
2007

	1. The Toys Of Men
	2. Cosmic Intervention
	3. Jerusalem
	4. Back In the Woods
	5. All Over Again
	6. Hmm Hmm
	7. Bad Asses
	8. Game
	9. La Cancion De Sofia
	10. El Bajo Negro
	11. Broski
	12. Chateauvallon 1972 (Dedicated To Tony Williams)
	13. Bass Folk Song No. 6

School Days
1976

	1. School Days
	2. Quiet Afternoon
	3. The Dancer
	4. Desert Song
	5. Hot Fun
	6. Life Is Just A Game

For Stanley’s complete discography visit StanleyClarke.com

---

Present Tense
1995

	1. Thick
	2. East St.louis
	3. Who Do You Love?
	4. Door #3
	5. Sweet Tooth
	6. Wolfbane
	7. Tea In The Sahara
	8. Dark
	9. And Then You'll Know
	10. By Any Means Necessary
	11. Two Weeks In Another Town
	12. The Shadow Of Lo
	13. Caprice

Big City
1977

	1. Big City
	2. Sweet Dreamer
	3. Egypt (Interlude)
	4. Nocturne (Interlude)
	5. Rapid Transit
	6. Ritmo Loco
	7. Dreams Come and Go Away
	8. Enchanted Pool Suite: Prelude/Pts. 1 and 2
	9. And We Meet Again

For Lenny’s complete discography visit LennyWhite.com

---

Consequence of Chaos
2006

	1. San Marco (Moderna)
	2. Turquoise
	3. Odyssey
	4. Tao
	5. Azucar
	6. Sanctuary
	7. Hypnose
	8. Red Moon
	9. Cry for You
	10. Just Three Words
	11. Tempest
	12. Storm Off-Shore
	13. Black Pearls
	14. Africana Suite
	15. San Marco (Vecchio)

Elegant Gypsy
1977

	1. Flight Over Rio
	2. Midnight Tango
	3. Mediterranean Sundance
	4. Race With Devil on Spanish Highway
	5. Lady of Rome, Sister of Brazil
	6. Elegant Gypsy Suite

For Al’s complete discography visit AlDiMeola.com