Return to Forever - Romantic Warrior (1976)

Chick Corea's Return to Forever project is one of the benchmarks of mid-70s Jazz Fusion, what it lacks in songwriting it more than makes up for in technical prowess- Al DiMeola's guitar runs sizzle, Stanley's Clarke's bass lines pop and Lenny White anchors it all with some funky drumming. 

Chick is Chick, what more can be said about the man? If you find this too dense and impenetrable, try Chick's earlier stuff and work your way up to it. 

This comes with a disclaimer: they veer heavily into psuedoclassical territory here and if you're a fan of both jazz and prog as well as later-day jam band noodling (a la Phish, et. al.) then this one does not disappoint. 
Return to Forever - Romantic Warrior (1976; Columbia Records)

Guru Guru - Dance of the Flames (1974)

A guitar-driven Krautrock record from the Mani Neumeier-led Guru Guru; which is notable because Neumeier was one of the better drummers in the Kosmiche scene so for him to sort of step back and allow his supporting cast to shine here makes this record altogether more special.

This was the only record guitarist Houschäng Nejadapour recorded with the band, and his contributions are pretty spectacular- his playing borders on spine-tingling fusion jazz a la John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra before giving way to straight up Krauty motorik and world music excursions.

Prepare to have your faces melted. Off.

Guru Guru - Dance of the Flames (1974; Atlantic Records)
-links to YouTube-

Harold Land - Choma (Burn) 1971

"Harold Land was one of the major contributors in the history of the jazz saxophone..." says Kenny Burrell, renowned jazz guitarist and head of the UCLA Jazz Studies Program, of which he gave Land a position teaching one of his instrumental jazz combo classes in 1996. And there you have it; one legend speaking about another with reverence and humility, but most importantly truth. Harold Land was another one of the many "figures in the shadows" of jazz that never fully got their due.

Land made an album under his own name for a 1949 Savoy session that now seem to be lost to eternity; his earliest recordings to gain notoriety (as well as survive) were with the Clifford Brown & Max Roach Quintet (he preceded a more famous sax player in Sonny Rollins) and was featured prominently on their first three records. He then left to explore some other things with Curtis Counce, Red Mitchell and releasing records as a leader himself, but he wouldn't find a true creative equal until he started making music (actually, some of the best jazz albums of the late 1960's) with the one and only Mr. Bobby Hutcherson. They would make 11 records together in an eight-year span, from 1968 on through until the mid-70's.

So this record, Choma (Burn) would feature only one Hutcherson composition, and would lean towards a more fusion-y direction- which would of course mean funky and accessible. This was never released as a CD, so you're gonna have to hunt this down at your favorite local record store...

Harold Land - Choma (Burn) 1971; Mainstream Records
-link opens to YouTube-

Arnie Lawrence - Unobstructed Universe (1976)

I found this a few weeks ago on a blog I like to frequent (Prog Not Frog), and all I can say is that it's absolutely amazing. Funky-ass rhythms that melt away into some free jazz/space jam stuff and then back again- and that's just during the 30-minute title track.

I don't know a whole lot about this release except that it's listed under both Arnie Lawrence as leader and credited to Unobstructed Universe as the band. I read in an interview with Lawrence that it was his intention to call the band and record Unobstructed Universe but for contractual reasons it's listed under him. Go figure.

Either way, it's some funky ass fusion shit from the mid-1970's...

Arnie Lawrence - Unobstructed Universe (1976; Adamo Records)
-link opens to YouTube video-

Surrender To The Air - Surrender To The Air (1996)

Surrender to the Air is the only album from free jazz ensemble Surrender To The Air - an instrumental collective organized by Trey Anastasio of Phish in early '96.

Though never explicitly stated on the record or its notes, the album was a sort of tribute to jazz composer and bandleader Sun Ra, an Anastasio favorite (several of the performers on Surrender to the Air - Allen, Choice and Ray - had performed with Sun Ra).

The album has been out of print since 2000. (from Wikipedia)

The Players:

Marshall Allen, sax

Trey Anastasio, guitar

Kofi Burbridge, flute

Oteil Burbridge, bass

Damon R. Choice, vibes

John Fishman, drums

Bob Gullotti, drums

James Harvey, trombone

John Medeski, organ

Michael Ray, trumpet

Marc Ribot, guitar

Surrender To The Air - Surrender To The Air (1996; Elektra Records)

John Scofield - A Go Go (1998)

Jazz guitarist John Scofield with John Medeski, Billy Martin & Chris Wood; one of the best studio jazz records of the '90s- there's some really funky shit on this album (everything revolves around the "groove", kids...). 

Medeski Martin & Wood bring their avant-garde background to Sco's modal and hard bop leanings to create one of the most rewarding listens from a jazz guitarist ever.

A must-have for any fans of fusion and/or funk...

John Scofield - A Go Go (1998; Verve Records)