At the second reunion in as many years of the original members of '70s fusion favorites Return to Forever (Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke and Lenny White), the group was midway through a Chaka Khan-led cover of the Gershwin standard “I Loves You Porgy" when a black-clad Stevie Wonder was led to the stage.
The crowd erupted as the R&B legend took a place at the mike near Corea's keyboards, his sweet harmonica gliding with Khan into Gershwin's lilting melody. The ovation grew louder as he joined on vocals. It was a memorable, surprising moment on a night that unfortunately could have used more of them.
Not that the all-star lineup of veteran musicians wasn't game. After guitarist John Scofield led his Piety Street Band through some raucous New Orleans gospel-blues, Corea introduced his trio with a mischievous promise of “illegal melodies [and] illegal chords." The band then embarked on a sprawling acoustic take on “500 Miles High" from Return to Forever's 1972 debut, “Light as a Feather."
The longtime collaborators proved still capable of recapturing their signature virtuosity, especially Clarke, who curled around his upright bass to weave through an unholy cavalcade of notes that few could ever match.
