Well the RTF tour is well over by now - all 54 concerts. It was quite
a thrill renewing the RTF experience and refreshingly surprising to
see how well remembered the band was to all the audiences we played
to. Playing the "old" music was a kick too. Of course it's a trick to
call it old. What about times right now when we hear Mozart's music,
or even the standards of the 30's and 40's: "My Funny Valentine",
"Autumn Leaves", "Night And Day", etc. It could make you look at the
subject of new versus old in a "new" light. In fact, the songs were
used mostly as the usual excuses for improvisations which are usually
the fun of it for the musicians.
It was very heartening to me to see such enthusiastic responses for
the edgy, instrumental music we played - especially since there was no
recording released in all these years - no performances - and no
record company support of any kind. The whole experience was just
live, with the band and the audience - no need for extra hype. It
confirmed for me the truth and importance of the primary and direct
communication right from the artists to their audiences. I guess this
is a fixture of life: people love to entertain and be entertained. And
the simplest, straightest way to have that pleasure is "live". As an
added thought: in jazz, the most real and exciting performances that
exist on record are the live recordings - no editing or "fixing up" -
just the untouched moment of creation.
Well, it looks like the PR phrase used to promote the tour has become
a reality: Return To Forever has returned! And I'm very happy about
that.
CC
