"Pure Music", the third and final album by the jazz-rock fusion band Chase, marked a significant shift in the band's direction. After the commercial disappointment of Ennea, Bill Chase redefined the band's approach, focusing more on instrumental tracks rather than vocal-dominated songs. This change was intended to showcase Chase's dynamic jazz/rock style and Bill Chase’s prominent trumpet playing, aligning with a more "commercial" appeal that resonated with high school and college band students.
The album featured a more instrumental approach, and although some of the tracks had been performed live over the previous year and a half, they were presented in a new light on Pure Music. The two vocal tracks co-written by Jim Peterik, "Run Back to Mama" and "Love Is on the Way," were included, but a third vocal version of the title track "Pure Music" was scrapped for not fitting the band's new direction.
Several tracks from the album, such as "Bochawa" and "Close Up Tight," were continuously refined during live performances. Chase was also working on a fourth LP, which was planned to include new compositions like Bill Chase’s melodic flugelhorn piece "Ode to a New England Jellyfish," and arrangements of "2001: A Space Odyssey," "Shades of Venus," and "MacArthur Park." However, much of this material remained incomplete, with some projects like Bill's version of "Tubular Bells" only existing in preliminary stages.
Tragically, on August 9, 1974, Bill Chase and several band members were killed in a plane crash while en route to a performance at the Jackson County Fair in Minnesota. The crash involved a chartered Piper Twin Comanche and claimed the lives of Bill Chase, keyboardist Wally Yohn, drummer Walter Clark, guitarist John Emma, pilot Daniel Ludwig, and Ludwig's secretary Linda Swisher. Chase’s untimely death at age 39 marked a profound end to the band’s journey and cut short a promising career in jazz-rock fusion.
