Combining Latin and African rhythms with the light textures of MOR jazz, Special EFXemerged as one of the most prominent world fusion groups of their era. Formed in NewYork in 1982, Special EFX were essentially a duo comprised of guitarist Chieli Minucciand Hungarian-born drummer/percussionist George Jinda; debuting in 1985 with thealbum Modern Manners, they often recruited other musicians to help flesh out theirstate-of-the-art sound, among them Dave Grusin, Omar Hakim, and McCoy Tyner. Longfavoring an accessible and slick jazz-pop sound, the duo significantly altered theiridentity with 1990's Just Like Magic, adopting a more acoustic texture and exchangingJinda's electronic percussion for what he dubbed "wooden world music."