Magic Windows

Magic Windows
Studio album by Herbie Hancock
Released	September 29, 1981
Recorded	1981
Studio	The Automatt, San Francisco. Additional recording at Kendun Recording; Village Recorders; Ameraycan Studios, L.A.
Genre	Jazz-funk, jazz fusion, R&B
Length	42:39
Label	Columbia
Producer	Herbie Hancock, David Rubinson
Herbie Hancock chronology
Mr. Hands (1980) Magic Windows (1981) Herbie Hancock Trio (1982)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings	[2]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide	[3]

Magic Windows is the twenty-fifth album by jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, released on September 29, 1981, on Columbia Records. ^[4] The album peaked at No. 13 on the US Billboard Top Jazz LPs chart. ^[5]

Background

Hancock continued collaborating with associate producer Jeffrey Cohen on this album. A song called "Satisfied with Love" was also co-written by his sister, Jean Hancock. Artists such as Wah-Wah Watson, Louis Johnson, Ray Parker Jr., Al McKay, Adrian Belew, Sylvester, Sheila E. and Paulinho da Costa appeared on the record. ^[4]

Track listing

1. "Magic Number" (David Rubinson, Hancock, Jeffrey Cohen) – 7:24
2. "Tonight's the Night" (Hancock, Jeffrey Cohen, Ray Parker Jr.) – 6:31
3. "Everybody's Broke" (Alphonse Mouzon, Gavin Christopher, Hancock, Jeffrey Cohen) – 7:11
4. "Help Yourself" (David Rubinson, Gavin Christopher, Hancock, Jeffrey Cohen) – 6:43
5. "Satisfied with Love" (Hancock, Jean Hancock) – 6:31
6. "The Twilight Clone" (Adrian Belew, Hancock) – 8:19

Personnel

• Herbie Hancock - E-mu Polyphonic keyboard, E-mu Emulator, clavitar, Minimoog, Prophet 5, Oberheim Eight Voice, Yamaha CS-80, ARP Odyssey, ARP 2600, Hohner clavinet, Rhodes 88 Suitcase piano, Sennheiser, Linn LM-1 drum computer, modified Apple II+ computer, acoustic piano, bass (2), backing vocals (3)
• Michael Brecker - tenor saxophone (2, 4)
• Ray Parker Jr. (1–2), George Johnson (3, 6), Al McKay (4), Wah-Wah Watson (5), Adrian Belew (6) - guitar
• Freddie Washington (1, 5), Louis Johnson (3, 6), Ed Watkins (4) - bass
• John Robinson (1, 3), Ray Parker Jr. (2), James Gadson (4), Alphonse Mouzon (5) - drums
• Kwasi Dzidzornu, Kwawu Ladzekpo, Moody Perry III - bells, Ghanaian drums (6)
• Juan Escovedo, Pete Escovedo, Sheila Escovedo (1), Paulinho da Costa (6) - percussion
• Sylvester (1), Vicki Randle (2), Gavin Christopher (3–5) - lead vocals
• Jeanie Tracy (1), Dede Dickerson, Ngoh Spencer and Vicki Randle (2–4), David Bottom and Jeffrey Cohen (3), Julia, Luther, Maxine and Oren Waters (5) - backing vocals

See also

• Magic Windows at Discogs
• Page describing software for the Alpha Syntauri system

References

1. Ginell, Richard S. (2011). "Magic Windows - Herbie Hancock | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved July 18, 2011.
2. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 644. ISBN   978-0-141-03401-0.
3. Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 94. ISBN   0-394-72643-X.
4. Herbie Hancock - Magic Windows. Columbia Records. September 1981.
5. "Top Jazz LPs" (PDF). worldradiohistory.com. Billboard. October 31, 1981. p. 78. Retrieved August 16, 2025.