Jazz

VOICES Notes and news on Jazz releases

After their tenure in the original Return To Forever, recordings by the husband and wife team of percussionist Airto Moreira and vocalist Flora Purim -- separate and together -- were always full of energy and enthusiasm. Wings Of Imagination is a great description of this couple's soaring, boldly experimental approach to jazz, American and Brazilian, and also the name of a 2001 Concord Vista compilation which combines two such recordings.

The Magicians and The Sun Is Out were both recorded in the '80s but their sound and vision come straight from classic '70s fusion jazz. It's a bit surprising that these two iconoclasts, famous for exploring distant musical outposts and boundaries, take first flight with Magician's mellow prowl through the comfortable "Sweet Baby Blues." Purim later inhabits the sweeping, dramatic ballad "Esquinas" more than merely sings it, while Moreria wildly drives and dominates the landscapes of "Jump" and "The Magician" -- torrid thickets of jungle percussion and lusty melodies, rendered in bright psychedelic colors and crackling electricity.

The Sun Is Out further explores this dynamic by pairing "Forever Friends" with "Midday Sun" one of Purim's most famous ballads, and connects the free wheeling, spiritualized fusion jam "Sambo Do Cantor" with the explosive "Lua Flora" and an adventurous title track as warm, vibrant and brilliant as... you know.

The 1970s may be retired to the pages of history, but you can still hear the heady fusion sounds and styles of that time ascending on Purim and Airto's Wings Of Imagination.