In the wake of the great jazz trumpeter's death I'd been a little dismayed that Donald Byrd was being celebrated by my Facebook friends mainly for the his 70's recordings with the Mizell Brothers. Of course these are all amazing tunes, and I love them as intensely as anyone. Way back in the 90s I was asked by Blue Note Japan to choose an album from the catalogue for re-release in Japan, and I chose Places ANd Spaces, at a time when the Mizell Brothers recordings had not yet gained the formidable reputation they deservedly have today. However Donald Byrd had already enjoyed a prodigous career that went back to 1955, almost twenty years before he stepped in the studio with the fusion pioneers. So it was my intent to play a greater breadth of Byrd's works on the show whilst not ignoring his later crossover material. I'd even lined up "Lovin' You" and "Love Has Come Around" for the closing sequence. However I arrived at the studio and launched into my selection following the usual bit of banter with messrs Allen and Hale of The Wildstyle, only to discover about twenty minutes in, that not only had I left those two anthemic twelves back in Kentish Town but that also my back-up cd on which I thought I'd burned some more of his classics was actually blank! So if you hear a note of panic in my voice round about "Elijah", that's why!
No worries, I had plenty of original Byrd vinyl and a bunch of CDs to cover my losses, however what my "space cadet" forgetfulness meant was that the show became just a bit more "hardcore", in fact I ended up playing hardly any of Byrd's most celebrated works, and that I regard as being providential! Everything happens for a reason.
My only regret was that without those two tunes for the last half hour I wasn't able to naturally plug this Saturday's If Music session at Plastic People, "Love Is In The Air,And In The Titles". But there you go If Music presents a post Valentine's celebration of "love" records, strictly vinyl featuring Myself , If's Jean Claude Thompson and Budgie from Honest Jons, Saturday 16th, Plastic People!!
So two hours of Byrd which focusses on the jazz musician and composer ( though he didn't actually write any of the tunes he's best known for), and I talk a bit about his role as an educator and perpetual student. Definitely something of a polymath, Donald Byrd was one of the last few jazzers who connects with that post-bop tradition, there's only the likes of Sonny Rollins, Wayne Shorter and Ahmad Jamal left and maybe a few more but a rapidly dwindling coterie of jazz legends. However his career, and the choices he made, stand as a testament to a a great man who had an ability to reach out communicate, educate and involve way beyond his role as a jazz musician.
Spanning from his 57 recording with Gigi Gryce through to a lovely tribute tune from 95, Ahmad Jamal's "Big Byrd", basically a dialogue betwwen two of my favourite ever players, this Is Donald Byrd.
R.I.P.
1.Donald Byrd&Johnny Cole with The Duke Pearson Quintet - Sudel
2.Onward Tl Morning
3.Fancy Free
4 Elijah
5.Donald Byrd and Gigi Gryce - Elgy
6.Ghana
7.Shangri-La
8.Fufu
9.Cristo Redentor
10.Ahmad Jamal ft. Donald Byrd - Big Byrd
11.I Love The GIrl
12 Flight Time
13.The Blackbyrds - The Baby
14.Donald Byrd&Booker Little -Wee Tina
15.Solomon Ilori- Gbogbo Omo Ibile (Going Home)
