There are two Weather Report albums under the name "Weather Report". The fi… Read Full Bio ↴There are two Weather Report albums under the name "Weather Report".
The first was released in 1971.
The second was released in 1982.

Weather Report 1971
Recording Date: Feb 16, 1971 -- Mar 17, 1971

Originally Released in May 1971, Weather Report was the debut album by the group of the same name. The album was reissued by Columbia Records in 1992. The album was digitally remastered by Vic Anesini in November 1991 at Sony Music Studios in New York City, and then released again under the Sony International label.
The style of music on this album can be described as avant-garde jazz with electric instruments. It continues the style of Miles Davis album Bitches Brew on which Zawinul and Shorter played but goes perhaps even further with experimentation.

Weather Report's self-titled debut album Weather Report, released in 1971, caused a sensation in the jazz world and is still considered a classic of early fusion.
It was awarded Album of the Year by Down Beat magazine’s polls that year.

Here we have the free-floating, abstract beginnings of Weather Report, which would define the state of the electronic jazz rock art from its first note almost to its last. Their first album is a direct extension of the Miles Davis In a Silent Way / Bitches Brew period, more fluid in sound and more volatile in interplay. Joe Zawinul ruminates in a delicate, liquid manner on Rhodes electric piano; at this early stage, he used a ring modulator to create weird synthesizer-like effects. Wayne Shorter's soprano sax shines like a beacon amidst the swirling ensemble work of co-founding bassist Miroslav Vitous, percussionist Airto Moreira, and drummer Alphonse Mouzon. Zawinul's most memorable theme is "Orange Lady" (previously recorded, though uncredited, by Davis on Big Fun), while Shorter scores on "Tears" and "Eurydice." One of the most impressive debuts of all time by a jazz group.

Track listing

1. "Milky Way" (Shorter, Zawinul) – 2:33
2. "Umbrellas" (Shorter, Vitous, Zawinul) – 3:27
3. "Seventh Arrow" (Vitous) – 5:23
4. "Orange Lady" (Zawinul) – 8:44
5. "Morning Lake" (Vitous) – 4:26
6. "Waterfall" (Zawinul) – 6:20
7. "Tears" (Shorter) – 3:25
8. "Eurydice" (Shorter) – 5:45

Total length 40:09

Personnel

* Joe Zawinul – Electric and acoustic piano
* Wayne Shorter – Soprano saxophone
* Miroslav Vitous – Electric and acoustic bass
* Alphonse Mouzon – Drums, voice
* Airto Moreira – Percussion

Other musicians

* Barbara Burton – Percussion (uncredited)
* Don Alias – Percussion (uncredited)

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Weather Report 1982

For some crafty reason, Weather Report gave its 11th Columbia album the same eponymous title as its first, which no doubt led to massive retail confusion. It is the last WR album for Peter Erskine, Jaco Pastorius, and Robert Thomas Jr.; Thomas left the band soon afterwards. And with Pastorius receding a bit into the background, the creative balance tilts heavily toward Joe Zawinul, who contributes all but one of the seven compositions. "Volcano for Hire" and "Dara Factors One and Two" are the requisite Zawinul groove-athons, and his deepening awareness of the rapidly improving synthesizer's harmonic and timbral possibilities color such tracks as "Current Affairs" and the three-part "N.Y.C." suite. Though the creativity level seems to be on medium-tank here, the band could still startle the ear with surprising new sounds, a supremely pithy Wayne Shorter statement, or fresh Third World spices. Their ability to swing is never in doubt.

Track listing

1. "Volcano for Hire" (Zawinul) – 5:25
2. "Current Affairs" (Zawinul) – 5:54
3. "N.Y.C. (41st Parallel/The Dance/Crazy About Jazz)" (Zawinul) – 10:11
4. "Dara Factor One" (Zawinul) – 5:25
5. "When It Was Now" (Shorter) – 4:45
6. "Speechless" (Zawinul) – 5:58
7. "Dara Factor Two" (Zawinul/Shorter/Pastorius/Erskine/Thomas Jr.) – 4:27

Personnel

* Josef Zawinul – Electric keyboards, piano, clay drum, drum computer, percussion, voice, horn, woodwind, string and brass sounds
* Wayne Shorter – Tenor and soprano saxophones
* Jaco Pastorius – Bass guitar, percussion, voice
* Peter Erskine – Drums, drum computer, claves
* Robert Thomas Jr. – Percussion

Unfortunately the Last FM can't distinguish between the 1971 and the 1982 album.