The album received generally positive reviews, placed high on the contemporary jazz chart, and was nominated for a Grammy.

In 2010, Lorber reactivated the Jeff Lorber Fusion and released Now Is the Time on Heads Up International. In 2010, Lorber released the ’70s funk- and soul-inflected Heard That. He released He Had a Hat on Blue Note in 2007. He recorded for Verve and Zebra during the ’90s then moved over to Narada in the 2000s, releasing successful smooth jazz albums like 2003’s Philly Style and 2005’s Flipside. He did not issue his first proper solo LP until 1991’s Worth Waiting For, remaining both a prolific performer and producer for the rest of the decade. During the first half of the following decade, the band became one of the most popular jazz acts of the period, touring nonstop and even scoring a Best R&B Instrumental Grammy nomination for the radio hit “Pacific Coast Highway.” Released in 1986, Private Passion was Lorber’s most successful outing yet, but at this commercial peak he stopped recording, instead turning to production and session work. Lorber’s infatuation with jazz began during his stay at the Berklee College of Music, and after forming the Jeff Lorber Fusion he issued the group’s self-titled debut in 1977.

After collaborating with guitarist Mike Stern on 2019’s Eleven, the Jeff Lorber Fusion returned to jazz-funk with Space-Time in 2021.īorn in Philadelphia on November 4, 1952, he began playing the piano at the age of four, and as a teen performed with a variety of local R&B bands.

Following an extended period as a producer, Lorber returned to regular recording in the ’90s, and has since balanced his time between solo albums like 2007’s He Had a Hat and productions with his fusion trio like 2017’s Prototype. He scored a Grammy nomination for his 1985 song “Pacific Coast Highway,” an accolade that marked his rise into more commercial crossover jazz, culminating in 1986’s Private Passion. Emerging on the scene in the late ’70s, Lorber quickly established himself as a leader at the forefront of the electric jazz movement, issuing albums like 1978’s Soft Space (featuring Chick Corea) and 1977’s Water Sign with his group the Jeff Lorber Fusion. He crossed over to the mainstream charts with seven Top 200 titles, in addition to more than a dozen with genre-specific albums including Contemporary Jazz, Dance Albums, and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Known for his smooth style of weaving together elements of funk, R&B, rock, and electric jazz, Grammy Award-winning keyboardist, composer, and producer Jeff Lorber helped pioneer the post-fusion sound of contemporary jazz.

Jeff lorber fusion prototype