Donald Byrd
“Ethiopian Knights”
Blue Note BST 84380Recorded at A&M Recording Studios
Recorded: August 25th & 26th, 1971
Remix at: Van Gelder Recording Studios
Pub. by Elgy Music Pub. Co. BMI
Producer – George Butler
Engineer – Henry Lewy
Engineer [Remix] – Rudy Van Gelder
Liner Notes – Bill Quinn
Photography, Artwork – Norman Seelf
Album Design – Dave Bhang
VINYL TRANSFER TECHNICAL INFO: Blue Note repress -> Pro-Ject RM-5SE turntable / Sumiko Blue Point 2 cartridge / Pro-Ject Speedbox power supply -> Creek OBH-18 MM Phono Preamp -> M-Audio Audiophile 2496 soundcard. Recorded at 24-bit / 96 khz resolution to Audition. Click Repair on very light settings to remove some clicks and pops, some clicks removed manually in Audition. Track splitting in Adobe Audition 3.0. Dithered to 16-bit using iZotope M-Bit noise-shaping. Converted to FLAC using DbPoweramp. ID tags done with Foobar2000.
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HOLY CRAP look at that lineup!
I am not sure why this album is not better known. In fact it is almost downright ignored. No doubt it has been eclipsed by the masterwork `Black Byrd` that would come the following year. That´s too bad, as this is a critical ‘transition period’ album, between the Bitches Brewish explorations of ‘Electric Byrd’ and the trademark production and super-tight arrangements of the Mizzell Brothers on ‘Blackbyrd’ and ‘Street Lady’. (Incidentally, although he is not credited on the album, Larry Mizzell claims to have worked on this.. I’m not sure what I think of that, though..)
This album is much looser than what came before or after in Byrd’s body of beautiful booty-work. The two long tracks that make up the bulk of it are built on simple funk riffs around which the whole band vamps and takes solos. Drummer Ed Greene, while he definitely has chops, is not a jazz drummer in the strict sense. He was as session guy who played on some fabulous records by the likes of Eddie Kendricks and Lamont Dozier, and his style only adds to the album’s charm. Because he IS surrounded by some serious jazzista heavy-hitters: the inimitable Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, Harold Land on tenor, and from The Crusaders (formerly Jazz Crusaders), Joe Sample and William Felder.
I am not entirely convinced that this vinyl rip has many advantages over the remastered CD version released in the late 90s. {Years-later edit: no, I’m certain it really doesn’t. In fact you should probably just seek out the SBM remaster, and you don’t have to look far…}
