There was a lot of buzz in the 70s that his music was the future, a jazz/pop/rock fusion, in the same vein and Chicago, BS&T, etc. It didn't really happen on a larger scale, though. IMO, the chops required to write and play this music was well beyond your typical rock band, and their teen audience didn't care so much about the intricacies anyway.
I liked it a lot in the day, though and still do. Thanks for the enjoyment, Chuck.