Home
Love Byrd
Barnes and Noble
Loading Inventory...
Love Byrd in Bloomington, MN
Current price: $13.99
Love Byrd in Bloomington, MN
Current price: $13.99
Loading Inventory...
Size: OS
Recorded in 1981 and produced by
Isaac Hayes
, trumpeter and composer
Donald Byrd
's first recording for
Elektra
is the sound of a musician who has truly lost his way.
Byrd
's nearly decade-long collaboration with the
Mizell Brothers
ended when he left
Blue Note
for
. It wasn't so much that
left "
jazz
" for
funk
and
proto-disco
, the latter elements had been part of his sound since 1972 with
Black Byrd
(some would say the real transition to more
R&B
based music began before that with
Fancy Free
in 1965). The period with
the Mizells
, though decried by
critics everywhere as a sellout, was a fertile one for
creatively and married his vision of being a viable and accessible artist, one who sought out the direct experience of
soul
as a way of getting his music across. It was also a successful one commercially -- his albums sold to a wider audience and were played on commercial FM radio. But by the time he went
,
was caught between a rock and a hard place, and this set proves it. With vocals being handled by
Hayes
'
Hot Buttered Soul Unlimited
quartet, and the producer himself playing piano, vibes, Rhodes, and writing, along with
's
125th Street N.Y.C. Band
, there was little left for
to actually do.
' stamp on this record is thorough. There are some slick but effective
ballads
here, such as the album's finest moment,
"Butterfly"
written by
Andrew Walker
(with beautiful vibes work by
and acoustic piano by
Myra Walker
, as well as the most prominent work by
's trumpet); the bandleader's sole contribution
"I'll Always Love You"
is here, along with
' own
"I Feel Like Loving You Today"
(a slow-ish, sultry burner). The up-tempo tracks fall flat as
. There is something canned sounding about most of them, such as
William Duckett
"Love Has Come Around,"
which opens with a majestic guitar and piano intro before kicking off the two-note
vamp and handclap, which makes the track feel empty and cold. The deep
cover of
Cole Porter
"Love for Sale,"
is a bad joke despite some killer clavinet work by
Albert Crawford, Jr.
, and
"I Love Your Love,"
is more a vamp and a hook than a song. The set ends with another ballad with
' voice out in front of his
. The question here is daunting: where's
? His playing is simply an accessory to
' arrangements, and his fills, while present on every cut, never really bite and take hold; they're just there.
's artistic vision was cloudy at best when he was with
, and this exercise in blandness is a case in point. ~ Thom Jurek
Isaac Hayes
, trumpeter and composer
Donald Byrd
's first recording for
Elektra
is the sound of a musician who has truly lost his way.
Byrd
's nearly decade-long collaboration with the
Mizell Brothers
ended when he left
Blue Note
for
. It wasn't so much that
left "
jazz
" for
funk
and
proto-disco
, the latter elements had been part of his sound since 1972 with
Black Byrd
(some would say the real transition to more
R&B
based music began before that with
Fancy Free
in 1965). The period with
the Mizells
, though decried by
critics everywhere as a sellout, was a fertile one for
creatively and married his vision of being a viable and accessible artist, one who sought out the direct experience of
soul
as a way of getting his music across. It was also a successful one commercially -- his albums sold to a wider audience and were played on commercial FM radio. But by the time he went
,
was caught between a rock and a hard place, and this set proves it. With vocals being handled by
Hayes
'
Hot Buttered Soul Unlimited
quartet, and the producer himself playing piano, vibes, Rhodes, and writing, along with
's
125th Street N.Y.C. Band
, there was little left for
to actually do.
' stamp on this record is thorough. There are some slick but effective
ballads
here, such as the album's finest moment,
"Butterfly"
written by
Andrew Walker
(with beautiful vibes work by
and acoustic piano by
Myra Walker
, as well as the most prominent work by
's trumpet); the bandleader's sole contribution
"I'll Always Love You"
is here, along with
' own
"I Feel Like Loving You Today"
(a slow-ish, sultry burner). The up-tempo tracks fall flat as
. There is something canned sounding about most of them, such as
William Duckett
"Love Has Come Around,"
which opens with a majestic guitar and piano intro before kicking off the two-note
vamp and handclap, which makes the track feel empty and cold. The deep
cover of
Cole Porter
"Love for Sale,"
is a bad joke despite some killer clavinet work by
Albert Crawford, Jr.
, and
"I Love Your Love,"
is more a vamp and a hook than a song. The set ends with another ballad with
' voice out in front of his
. The question here is daunting: where's
? His playing is simply an accessory to
' arrangements, and his fills, while present on every cut, never really bite and take hold; they're just there.
's artistic vision was cloudy at best when he was with
, and this exercise in blandness is a case in point. ~ Thom Jurek
Recorded in 1981 and produced by
Isaac Hayes
, trumpeter and composer
Donald Byrd
's first recording for
Elektra
is the sound of a musician who has truly lost his way.
Byrd
's nearly decade-long collaboration with the
Mizell Brothers
ended when he left
Blue Note
for
. It wasn't so much that
left "
jazz
" for
funk
and
proto-disco
, the latter elements had been part of his sound since 1972 with
Black Byrd
(some would say the real transition to more
R&B
based music began before that with
Fancy Free
in 1965). The period with
the Mizells
, though decried by
critics everywhere as a sellout, was a fertile one for
creatively and married his vision of being a viable and accessible artist, one who sought out the direct experience of
soul
as a way of getting his music across. It was also a successful one commercially -- his albums sold to a wider audience and were played on commercial FM radio. But by the time he went
,
was caught between a rock and a hard place, and this set proves it. With vocals being handled by
Hayes
'
Hot Buttered Soul Unlimited
quartet, and the producer himself playing piano, vibes, Rhodes, and writing, along with
's
125th Street N.Y.C. Band
, there was little left for
to actually do.
' stamp on this record is thorough. There are some slick but effective
ballads
here, such as the album's finest moment,
"Butterfly"
written by
Andrew Walker
(with beautiful vibes work by
and acoustic piano by
Myra Walker
, as well as the most prominent work by
's trumpet); the bandleader's sole contribution
"I'll Always Love You"
is here, along with
' own
"I Feel Like Loving You Today"
(a slow-ish, sultry burner). The up-tempo tracks fall flat as
. There is something canned sounding about most of them, such as
William Duckett
"Love Has Come Around,"
which opens with a majestic guitar and piano intro before kicking off the two-note
vamp and handclap, which makes the track feel empty and cold. The deep
cover of
Cole Porter
"Love for Sale,"
is a bad joke despite some killer clavinet work by
Albert Crawford, Jr.
, and
"I Love Your Love,"
is more a vamp and a hook than a song. The set ends with another ballad with
' voice out in front of his
. The question here is daunting: where's
? His playing is simply an accessory to
' arrangements, and his fills, while present on every cut, never really bite and take hold; they're just there.
's artistic vision was cloudy at best when he was with
, and this exercise in blandness is a case in point. ~ Thom Jurek
Isaac Hayes
, trumpeter and composer
Donald Byrd
's first recording for
Elektra
is the sound of a musician who has truly lost his way.
Byrd
's nearly decade-long collaboration with the
Mizell Brothers
ended when he left
Blue Note
for
. It wasn't so much that
left "
jazz
" for
funk
and
proto-disco
, the latter elements had been part of his sound since 1972 with
Black Byrd
(some would say the real transition to more
R&B
based music began before that with
Fancy Free
in 1965). The period with
the Mizells
, though decried by
critics everywhere as a sellout, was a fertile one for
creatively and married his vision of being a viable and accessible artist, one who sought out the direct experience of
soul
as a way of getting his music across. It was also a successful one commercially -- his albums sold to a wider audience and were played on commercial FM radio. But by the time he went
,
was caught between a rock and a hard place, and this set proves it. With vocals being handled by
Hayes
'
Hot Buttered Soul Unlimited
quartet, and the producer himself playing piano, vibes, Rhodes, and writing, along with
's
125th Street N.Y.C. Band
, there was little left for
to actually do.
' stamp on this record is thorough. There are some slick but effective
ballads
here, such as the album's finest moment,
"Butterfly"
written by
Andrew Walker
(with beautiful vibes work by
and acoustic piano by
Myra Walker
, as well as the most prominent work by
's trumpet); the bandleader's sole contribution
"I'll Always Love You"
is here, along with
' own
"I Feel Like Loving You Today"
(a slow-ish, sultry burner). The up-tempo tracks fall flat as
. There is something canned sounding about most of them, such as
William Duckett
"Love Has Come Around,"
which opens with a majestic guitar and piano intro before kicking off the two-note
vamp and handclap, which makes the track feel empty and cold. The deep
cover of
Cole Porter
"Love for Sale,"
is a bad joke despite some killer clavinet work by
Albert Crawford, Jr.
, and
"I Love Your Love,"
is more a vamp and a hook than a song. The set ends with another ballad with
' voice out in front of his
. The question here is daunting: where's
? His playing is simply an accessory to
' arrangements, and his fills, while present on every cut, never really bite and take hold; they're just there.
's artistic vision was cloudy at best when he was with
, and this exercise in blandness is a case in point. ~ Thom Jurek
Shop Similar Products
