Coinciding with their reunion tour in 2008, Concord has issued a recent compilation of Return To Forever’s tracks from their “classic line-up” (as many call it) with Stanley Clarke, Chick Corea, Al Di Meola (or Bill Connors on this group’s first recording) and Lenny White. There was an anthology from several years ago, but it only covered their tracks on the Polydor label. This is the first compilation to include their best-selling Romantic Warrior album from the Columbia family.
What is different about this release is that all of the tracks are remixed from the original multitrack tapes. Many who know my tastes already know how I feel about most remixes, but in this case, their earlier albums had quite a dated, “old” sound to them. The remixes actually clean up the sound substantially, and you can hear more of the parts clearly now. With one more disc to the set, the group’s entire output could have been anthologized, but you won’t be left wanting for any missing tracks on this set, especially since it has Romantic Warrior in its entirety (which is many listeners’ favorite). I’ve enjoyed this one quite a bit, despite the remixes. Recommended!