Liberated Fantasies
(1976)
Overall, this is not a great record! That doesn't mean there aren't some special moments, but overall, this record doesn't make it. That being said, if you can get past "Seeing You," or skip it, then you'll find some nice stuff. Though one can tell that this is a follow up to I Love The Blues, it just doesn't come across as well. On the whole, I just sang too much.
"Seeing You" is a disaster! It really was the fault of radio! All that airplay for "Someday" made me want to hear more of my material on Black Radio. However, this was not the way to do it! It took me a long time to figure out what type of material was suitable for my voice.
I was also forming a band with Billy Cobham just before this LP was made, so I think my energies were directed elsewhere.
The most successful material on this record are the freer-style jazz material. I enlisted Napoleon Murphy Brock from Zappa's band to sing on some of the cuts. I also like the synthesizer arrangements of excerpts from my opera, Tzina. More on that later. I used the same band from I Love The Blues except for David Amaro, who was the guitarist with Flora Purim, and could play nice Brazilian rhythms. His wife Bonnie also sang on a cut. Also, Al Johnson (Embamba) played bass. Of course he later left Weather Report to join The Cobham/Duke band.
I also like "After The Love," which was homage to Milton Nascimento whom I love very much. I had become acquainted with him when I went to Brazil with Cannonball Adderley. I bought every record I could find by him, and other Brazilian artists. Before I went to Brazil in 1971, I only knew of Sergio Mendes and Brazil '65, '66, and Stan Getz with Astrud Gilberto. I love them, but in Brazil, I found so much more diversity. "Liberated Fantasies" was my attempt to add a strong instrumental jazz flavor to typical, or sometimes atypical Brazilian type melodies. I loved playing this tune live!
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