Jazz Greats Hancock, Corea Announce 1st Tour In 37 Years

Jazz greats Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock share much in common, but the last time they toured together was 37 years ago when Jimmy Carter was in the White House and Sony had just introduced the Walkman.

Photo: © Craig Lovell / Monterey Jazz Festival

Monterey Jazz Festival, Monterey Co. Fairgrounds, Monterey, Calif.

The performers announced a world tour of duo piano concerts on Thursday. It kicks off March 14 in Seattle.

“Chick and I have always had an open door toward the possibility of touring again,” Hancock said in an email. “We both felt that enough time has passed since our last major tour in 1978, and considering all of the experiences we have had in music and in life, that this was the perfect time to pass through that doorway again.”

Corea and Hancock both were members of Miles Davis’ bands of the 1960s, even playing together on keyboards on the trumpeter’s groundbreaking jazz-fusion albums, In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew.

“Herbie is a musical phenomenon and a rare human being,” Corea said in a statement. “To me he’s been a dear friend as well as a lifelong inspiration.”

Photo: John Davisson / Invision / AP

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Fairgrounds Racecourse, New Orleans, La.

The North American leg of the tour wraps in Carmel, Indiana on April 18. After a break, the duo will perform in Asia, Australia, New Zealand and Europe.