Donald Byrd II: The Birth of Disco?
Soul-Sides had a great post last week touching on the Mizell Brothers and their contribution to the birth of disco. Starting in the early 1970s, the Mizells' crystal-clean multitracked productions set a standard and a sound palette that many disco producers looked to emulate later in the decade.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and contend that the birth of disco occurs during 8 bars in the middle of Fight Time the first track on Donald Byrd's 1972 Mizell-produced album Black Byrd. If you don't believe me, skip through to 5'17. Remember this is April 1972! Flight Time is a complete production number, including the sample of the Boeing 707 that opens the track. Cheesy? Quite possibly, but it didn't stop Black Byrd going on to become Blue Note's best-selling record ever.
On Love's So Far Away, the nascence of disco is even more apparent - check out David T. Walker's killer rhythm guitar work. The band on Black Byrd includes Joe Sample (elp and synth), Wilton Felder (b) and the funkmonster himself, Harvey Mason (d).
Donald Byrd - Flight Time
Donald Byrd - Love's So Far Away
From Black Byrd: Blue NOte 84466 [Buy]
I'm going to go out on a limb here and contend that the birth of disco occurs during 8 bars in the middle of Fight Time the first track on Donald Byrd's 1972 Mizell-produced album Black Byrd. If you don't believe me, skip through to 5'17. Remember this is April 1972! Flight Time is a complete production number, including the sample of the Boeing 707 that opens the track. Cheesy? Quite possibly, but it didn't stop Black Byrd going on to become Blue Note's best-selling record ever.
On Love's So Far Away, the nascence of disco is even more apparent - check out David T. Walker's killer rhythm guitar work. The band on Black Byrd includes Joe Sample (elp and synth), Wilton Felder (b) and the funkmonster himself, Harvey Mason (d).
Donald Byrd - Flight Time
Donald Byrd - Love's So Far Away
From Black Byrd: Blue NOte 84466 [Buy]
I'll also mention in passing how good it is to have the international cricket season underway again - especially when New Zealand sets a new world record for a 2nd innings run chase (332) to beat Australia. OK, Australia won the series 2-1, but the kiwis went out there last night in the final match in Christchurch and beat the best team in the world. They looked good doing it, and it was super, super-sweet.
posted by etnobofin @ 17:10
4 Comments:
At 6:41 PM,
etnobofin said…
Hmmm, interesting how people hear music in different ways. I've had this album for 10 years, and I've always thought that the 8 bars starting around 5'17 were by far the most "disco" moment in the entire track.
(And I've had this impression ever since I listened to it for the first time - lying on a bed in my host family's bedroom in Phoenix, AZ one April afternoon. I'd just bought a swag of hard-to-get-in-NZ jazz CDs at Best Buy Scottsdale, and this was the one I chose to play first..)
At 6:42 PM,
etnobofin said…
OK, we're going to have to disagree on this one - I guess I focus on hornlines and melodies, for obvious reasons. But if those 8 bars do remind me of anything, it is commercial ("bad"?) disco. I just made that connection the first time I heard the song and I've never been able to hear it any different.... :-)
And I agree, let's organise a waltz about Frank Lloyd Wright sometime.
At 6:09 PM,
DJ durutti said…
OK, I said i was gonna stay out of this, but i just listened and gotta say i agree w/ etno all the way on this one. that horn line starting @ 5:17 is proto disco to my ears all the way. But my favorite thing about this track is the jazz funk funky section from 3:20-5:17, w/ the slap bass, wah wah guitar and byrd trading off w/ the flute. love the occasional touches of classic '70s Rahsaan style overblown flute.
never had this album - so thanks etno!
p.s. great disco-ussion guys!
At 9:50 PM,
etnobofin said…
"Disco-ussion". Nice! Thanks matt.
Post a Comment
<< Home