Al di Meola

Guitarist Al Di Meola first rose to prominence as a blazing {jazz fusion} player before his playing matured and he began to conquer other styles, such as acoustic {Latin} music. Born on July 22, 1954, in Jersey City, NJ, Di Meola briefly studied at the Berklee School of Music in Boston during the early '70s before accepting a job replacing guitarist Bill Connors in {fusion} trailblazers Return To Forever (a group that included such monster instrumentalists as keyboardist Chick Corea and bassist Stanley Clarke) in 1974. It was with Di Meola that Return To Forever enjoyed their greatest commercial success, as such releases as 1974's Where Have I Known Before, 1975's No Mystery, and 1976's Romantic Warrior cracked the U.S. Top 40 before Di Meola jumped ship to launch a solo career.

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