CHIC COREA WAS A KEYBOARDIST OF OUR GENERATION - I’ve been devastated by the passing of Chick Corea. I think of him in the same way the generation before me thought of Duke Ellington or Count Basie, Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, Barry Harris, Sun Ra, I could go on, knowing there are many other keyboardists and pianist-band leaders who stood out in previous generations and became the Jazz standard-bearers of their generation.
With all of the changes that took place in the Jazz of our generation; fusion, techno, Chic still remained a standard-bearer for this music. I always thought of him as being closer to my generation, (70 years old) than the generation before me. My perception of his age contributed largely to the shock that ensued when I heard about his passing.
As deep as his approach to Jazz and fusion music was, he had a very light “lifting” a sound that affected me upon first hearing “Light As A Feather”. That album ushered in a period of long-needed “lightness” in my life after a breakup with my first love.
I don’t know when it was that I began to understand that musicians who “go hard” on the road end up losing a good 20 years off their lives.
As I examined the lifetimes of so many great Jazz pianists, I’m struck by the pattern of relatively short lifespans I’ve observed; Duke Ellington, born just before the turn of the century, dies at 75 Count Basie died at 79. Earl “Fatha” Hines died at 79. Tommy Flanagan died at 71.
There were many pianists of a later generation who died very young; John Hicks died at 64. Don Pullen died at 53. Bill Evans, of the previous generation, died at 51. Wynton Kelly, likewise, died at 39! But Larry Willis died at 76, though so many thought it was way too soon. Kenny Kirkland, a great artist of my generation, who had a heart condition, died at 43. His death was also, like Chic, very devastating to me for very personal reasons.
I don’t think anyone believes that life didn’t squeeze all of the juice we could have from Chic Corea. But I’m certain that no one believes he didn’t have a ton more to give.
Millions will miss this great brother, and millions more will have a lifetime to discover this wise and generous, and prolific Jazz giant.
Chic’s album “Friends” was my “deserted island” favorite. It’s deep, yet light, and has the “lifting” quality that first attracted me to his music.
By - Jimi Cook, Saxophonist/Producer/Arranger/director of The VOA Band
Chick Corea was a great American jazz and fusion pianist, keyboardist, and composer The highly lauded maestro had a wide palette of influences, and his compositions had a major influence on early fusion and jazz-rock. Corea was born: June 12, 1941, Chelsea, Massachusetts Died: February 9, 2021, Tampa Bay, Florida, U.S. He leaves behind his widow Gayle Mora and son Thaddeus Corea.
