構成数 | 1枚

合計収録時間 | 00:52:07

The Blackbyrds: Allan Barnes, Stephen Johnson, Wesley Jackson (saxophone, flute), Kevin Toney (keyboards, vocals), Barney Perry, Orville Saunders (guitar, vocals), Joe Hall (bass, vocals), Keith Killgo (drums, vocals), Perk Jacobs (percussion). Engineers: Val Garay, Jim Stern, David Hassinger, Jim Nipar, Serge Reyes. Personnel: The Blackbyrds (vocals, horns); Orville Saunders, Barney Perry (vocals, guitar); Kevin Toney (vocals, keyboards); Joseph Hall III (vocals, electric bass); Keith Killgo (vocals, drums); Merry Clayton (vocals); Wesley Jackson (guitar, flute, saxophone, tenor saxophone); Allan Curtis Barnes (flute, saxophone, soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone); Steve Johnson (flute, saxophone, tenor saxophone); Stephen Johnson (tenor saxophone); Oscar Brashear (trumpet, flugelhorn); Perk Jacobs (percussion). Liner Note Author: Gene Santoro. Recording information: Sound Factory, Hollywood, CA. Photographer: Phil Bray. Unknown Contributor Roles: Perk Jacobs; Keith Killgo; Wesley Jackson ; Joseph Hall III; Allan Curtis Barnes; Steve Johnson ; Kevin Toney; Orville Saunders; Barney Perry. When Donald Byrd embraced soul and funk in the 1970s, some jazz players and critics didn't hesitate to lambast the trumpeter and label him a sellout. But while it's always sad to see a great improviser put his improvisatory skills on the back burner, the fact is that many of the Byrd's more commercially successful recordings were highly creative. Like Byrd's own '70s dates, the albums he produced for the Blackbyrds are best described as soul and funk with jazz overtones. Anyone who seriously followed the Black music scene of the mid-1970s has heard many of the songs on this CD, which range from the dreamy "Walking In Rhythm" to invigorating funk hits like "Happy Music," "Do It Fluid" and "Rock Creek Park" (a suggestive gem that many rappers have sampled). The jazz influence is especially strong on the instrumental "Gut Level" and the peaceful "Summer Love," which has slightly Pharoah Sanders-ish qualities. But it must be stressed that this band had more to offer from an R&B standpoint than a jazz standpoint. For lovers of '70s R&B, this is a collection to savor. ~ Alex Henderson

録音 | ステレオ (Studio)