Article Contributed by Missing Piece Group
Published on 2026-02-28
Today, Candid Records and Chick Corea Productions released the CD and 2-LP vinyl set of Forever Yours: The Farewell Performance. Depicting the final performances of the legendary pianist, the liner notes contain many heartfelt messages of admiration, from family, friends and peers including Alicia Keys, Herbie Hancock, Hans Zimmer, Robert Glasper, Bobby McFerrin, Stanley Clarke, Lang Lang and others. With his death leaving an unfillable hole in the jazz landscape, the album stands as both a deeply affecting goodbye and a definitive document of the Chick Corea solo experience.
Recorded just four months before the NEA Jazz Master’s passing, the release follows the 2026 GRAMMY® win of Trilogy 3 for “Best Jazz Performance”, an honor bestowed upon Chick just days before the 5th anniversary of his death. Ahead of the release, Candid Records and Chick Corea Productions shared the official video for “Overjoyed”, which further celebrates the impact of one of Jazz’s greatest virtuosos.
Listen To and Purchase Forever Yours: The Farewell Performance
Watch The Official Video of “Overjoyed”
When asked about Chick Corea’s uncanny ability to bridge the gap between composers of all genres, longtime collaborator Bernie Kirsh said, “He looked up to the musicians he loved, and in his own exploration of some of their pieces, he found similarities between them–even if centuries separated their works. By combining such works in his solo performances, say a Mozart with a Gershwin, he could showcase some unexpected connections in an exciting way.”
Recorded in October of 2020 when Corea gave two inspired solo-piano concerts at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater, FL, Forever Yours boasts that signature Corea brand of cascading virtuosity — the jaw-dropping technical command and harmonic knowledge that somehow feels only flowing and swinging, never verbose. Then there’s the program, in which Corea offers his revered original music (“Armando’s Rhumba,” a mini-recital of his delightful Children’s Songs) alongside homages to some of the composers he held dearest: Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Mozart, Stevie Wonder, Bill Evans, Duke Ellington, all of which is stitched together by Corea’s musical prowess.
The performances showcase not only his brilliant knack for continuity, but also the profound sense of generosity and playfulness that was at the core of his being. Throughout the recording, we’re treated to Corea’s uncut spoken interludes, where he introduces tunes and explains concepts in his affable, familial way, as if engaged in friendly conversation with visiting neighbors. He also performs two of his “Portrait” pieces, in which he brings members of the audience onto the stage and improvises music based on their presence.
About Chick Corea:
Born in 1941 in Massachusetts, the iconic keyboardist, composer and bandleader Chick Corea was a DownBeat Hall of Famer and NEA Jazz Master, as well as one of the most nominated artists in GRAMMY Awards history with 77 nods – and 29 wins, in addition to 5 Latin GRAMMYS. From straight-ahead to avant-garde, bebop to jazz-rock fusion, children’s songs to chamber and symphonic works, Corea touched an astonishing number of musical bases in his career since playing with the genre-shattering bands of Miles Davis in the late ’60s and early ’70s.
While one would expect the 20th century to have been the apex of Corea’s career, he was certainly as productive in the 21st. Whether playing acoustic piano or electric keyboards, leading multiple bands, performing solo or collaborating with a who’s who of musicians, Chick’s career never paused. Underscoring this, he was named Artist of the Year three times between 2014 and 2018 in the DownBeat Readers Poll, a publication that called him “a pianist virtually without peer.”
CANDID RECORDS: From 1960-1963, founder, A&R man, and producer Nat Hentoff recorded over 30 extraordinary albums for the Candid Records label. One cannot underestimate the breadth of these recordings – from bebop to the avant-garde, to blues. Candid sat dormant for years until Black Lion Records founder and producer, Alan Bates, bought the label in 1989. The next phase of Candid Records is happening now. Since its relaunch in 2021 the label has reissued over 30 titles to high critical acclaim. Thanks to brilliant new releases, Candid has received four GRAMMY® awards – 2024 winners the Count Basie Orchestra, 2023 winners Terri Lyne Carrington and Wayne Shorter, and 2022 winner Eliane Elias. Today’s Candid is not only committed to its legacy but looks forward to defining its future with the quality music that is synonymous with its elite heritage. Learn more at www.candidrecords.com
