The Jeff Lorber Fusion - Wizard Island (1980)

Japanese Import

Fantastic synth-based instrumental pop/smooth jazz that set the tone for the genre in the early '80s (see also Weather Report, Steps Ahead, Spyro Gyra, Crusaders, Flim & The BB's, etc, and in particular, Yellowjackets). Even without the obi and a price point around $10, I didn't hesitate picking this import CD out of the used bin as soon as I saw it. Judging by current asking prices on the secondary market, it was sound investment (pun intended).

With this album, The Jeff Lorber Fusion expanded from a trio to a quartet with the addition of saxophonist Kenny Gorelick, later known as simply Kenny G. Gorelick sounds great on tenor and is a more restrained soloist (read: doesn't add as many ornaments to his licks as he eventually would), but is immediately identifiable when he picks up a soprano sax. Melody lines are often doubled (keyboard/woodwind) throughout the album. And I am digging the sound of Lorber's analog synths - among those listed in the credits are Minimoog, Moog Modular System, Oberheim OB-X, and Prophet-5.

I thought "Wizard Island" was just a whimsical album title, but then I find out that it's an actual island in Crater Lake National Park, Oregon. I'm a big supporter of our national parks and visit whenever possible (I was enjoying Big Bend just last week), so I'm adding Crater Lake to my "to do" list.

Press of the time:

• Record World: "their sound is highly cosmopolitan"
• Musician - "satisfying if anonymous"
• Billboard: "successfully bridges contemporary jazz and rock"
• CashBox: "the broadest, most tasteful multi-keyboard style this side of Joe Zawinul"
• High Fidelity: "their best effort to date"

To call this album their best yet is saying something since it was preceded by the excellent LPs Soft Space (1978) and Water Sign (1979).

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #123
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• CashBox: #96
• CashBox Jazz: #3

Tracks: It's a quality listen from top-to-bottom, but just for fun let's rank 'em:

1. Wizard Island
2. City
3. Can't Get Enough
4. Rooftops (feat. Chick Corea)
5. Sweet
6. Reflections
7. Lava Lands
8. Shadows
9. Fusion Juice

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None. Another one of those albums that I wish I had been introduced to when released because the 1980 version of myself might have enjoyed it even more than today's version.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Step It Up (2015)
The Very Best of Jeff Lorber (2002)
Midnight (1998)