I didn’t know that Chick Corea Elektric Band members John Patitucci and Frank Gambale shared the same birthday (December 22)! Happy birthday, gentlemen!

This year has been an especially good year to celebrate this all-star band. The original five Elektric Band studio albums, from 1986-1991, have been released in a deluxe 10-LP box set and a new live recording of the band on the road has been issued.

The Elektric Band, led by the late legendary pianist and composer Chick Corea, emerged in the mid-1980s as a groundbreaking force in contemporary jazz. Corea, a 27-time Grammy winner and Jazz Master of the National Endowment for the Arts, assembled a lineup including John Patitucci, Dave Weckl, Eric Marienthal, and Frank Gambale. Each of those musicians, talented in their own right, would springboard to new career highs. It was truly a remarkable band.

I still haven’t quite forgiven myself for not seeing them when they were in town around 1991.

The 10-LP vinyl box set compiles the original five GRP studio albums, presented in gatefold jackets with printed inner sleeves and restored artwork in a deluxe slipcase. This limited-edition release, for the first time, reinstates the albums to their original full running order. Additionally, the set includes reproduced memorabilia from Chick’s private archive, offering a comprehensive tribute to the Elektric Band’s creativity, innovation, and musicianship.

The Future Is Now live recording was compiled by Chick before his passing. This 3-LP vinyl and 2-disc CD album captures the band on tour from 2016-2018. It features in depth liner notes from Corea and all of the Elektric Band members.

I’m a fan of things coming full circle and these serve as a fitting closing chapter for this memorable group.