''Heavy Weather'' is the seventh album by Weather Report, released in 1977 through

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. The release originally sold about 500,000 copies; it would prove to be the band's most commercially successful album. ''Heavy Weather'' received a 5-star review from ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' magazine and went on to be voted jazz album of the year by the readers of that publication. On this album the lineup consisted of Weather Report founders

Joe Zawinul Josef Erich Zawinul ( '; 7 July 1932 – 11 September 2007) was an Austrian jazz and jazz fusion keyboardist and composer. First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with Miles Davis and to bec ...

(keyboards, synthesizers) and Wayne Shorter (saxophone), alongside Jaco Pastorius (bass), Alex Acuña (drums), and

Manolo Badrena Manolo Badrena (born March 17, 1952, in San Juan, Puerto Rico) is a percussionist most noted for his work with Weather Report from 1976 to 1977. He has made contributions to over 100 recordings that span jazz, world music, pop, and Latin music. B ...

(percussion). It was produced and orchestrated by Zawinul, with additional production by Shorter and Pastorius, and engineered by Ron Malo. Featuring the jazz standard " Birdland", the album is one of the best sellers in the Columbia jazz catalog. This opening track was a significant commercial success, something not typical of instrumental music. The melody had been performed live by the band as part of "Dr Honoris Causa", which was from

's eponymous solo album. "Teen Town", a Pastorius composition where his bass takes the lead instrument role, is often considered a highlight of the album and of Pastorius's career. Although not mentioned as a live recording in the liner notes, "Rumba Mamá" (a percussion and vocals feature for

and Alex Acuña) was recorded at a band's concert in Montreux,

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

during the summer of 1976, of which a film would be subsequently released on DVD in 2007.

Critical reception

Dan Oppenheimer said in a June 1977 review for '' Rolling Stone'' that he felt the band had moved away from their earlier music, losing a lot of the space, melodies and airy feel that set them apart from other jazz-rock bands, but gaining a new bassist who "has been instrumental in developing their busier, talkative style", and that while their music previously "went up and up only, becoming more ethereal as it went, the new bottom makes all the difference in the world".

Legacy

Richard Ginell commented in a retrospective review for Allmusic that it was released "just as the jazz-rock movement began to run out of steam", however he felt that "this landmark album proved that there was plenty of creative life left in the idiom." In February 2011, ''Heavy Weather'' was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. The album was included in Robert Dimery's

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...

. In 2000, it was voted #822 in Colin Larkin's '' All Time Top 1000 Albums''. The singer Bilal names it among his 25 favorite albums, citing the interplay between Jaco Pastorius and

Track listing

Personnel

Weather Report

– ARP 2600 on all tracks except "Rumba Mamá",

Rhodes electric piano The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, t ...

on all tracks except "Birdland", "Rumba Mamá", and "Havona", Yamaha grand piano on "Birdland", "Harlequin", "The Juggler", and "Havona", Oberheim polyphonic synthesizer on all tracks except "Rumba Mamá", "Palladíum", and "The Juggler", vocals on "Birdland", melodica on "Birdland" and "Teen Town", and guitar and tabla on "The Juggler". * Wayne Shorter –

Soprano saxophone The soprano saxophone is a higher-register variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument invented in the 1840s. The soprano is the third-smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists (from smallest to largest) of the soprillo, sop ...

on all tracks except "A Remark You Made" and "Rumba Mamá", and tenor saxophone on "Birdland"", "A Remark You Made", and "Palladíum" * Jaco Pastorius – Fretless bass on all tracks except "Rumba Mamá", mandocello on "Birdland" and "The Juggler", vocals on "Birdland", drums on "Teen Town", steel drums on "Palladíum" * Alex Acuña – Drums on all tracks except "Teen Town" and "Rumba Mamá",

conga The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest). ...

s and tom-toms on "Rumba Mamá", and handclaps on "The Juggler" *

– Tambourine on "Birdland", congas on "Teen Town", "Rumba Mamá", and "Palladíum", vocals on "Harlequin" and "Rumba Mamá", timbales on "Rumba Mamá", and percussion on "Palladíum" and "The Juggler"

Production

* Joe Zawinul – Record producer and orchestrator * Jaco Pastorius – Co-producer * Wayne Shorter – Assistant producer * Ron Malo – Engineer * Jerry Hudgins – Assistant engineer * Brian Risner – Assistant engineer and chief meteorologist * Frank Tozour – Sony reissue premastering * Nancy Donald – Design * Lou Beach –

Illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vid ...

* Keith Williamson – Photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

The album was first released in LP format worldwide throughout

, CBS Records,

Sony Records Sony Records was a record label founded by R&B duo Ike & Tina Turner in 1963. It was not affiliated with Sony Group Corporation. Ike Turner produced singles by members of the Kings of Rhythm and the Ikettes on Sony Records. Records on the label ...

, and other minor record labels. In 1984, it was first released in CD format in the U.S. on Columbia Records. In 1992, the album was

remaster Remaster refers to changing the quality of the sound or of the image, or both, of previously created recordings, either audiophonic, cinematic, or videographic. The terms digital remastering and digitally remastered are also used. Mastering A ...

ed, and, in 2002, published in Super Audio CD format. :See the table below for a more comprehensive list of the album releases.

References

External links

Weather Report Annotated Discography: Heavy Weather
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heavy Weather (Album) 1977 albums Columbia Records albums Weather Report albums