Grant Green & Donald Byrd - His Majesty King Funk & Up With Donald Byrd (1995)

Tracklist

01 The Selma March 8:31
02 Willow Weep For Me 10:02
03 The Cantaloupe Woman 4:55
04 That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day) 5:21
05 Daddy Grapes 4:35
06 Blind Man, Blind Man 2:53
07 Boom, Boom 4:24
08 House Of The Rising Sun 5:08
09 See, See, Rider 4:01
10 Cantaloupe Island 6:49
11 Bossa 7:59
12 Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child 5:16
13 You've Been Talkin' 'Bout Me, Baby 2:42
14 My Babe 2:49

This single Verve CD reissues the complete contents of two unrelated LPs: Grant Green's His Majesty King Funk (great title) and Up with Donald Byrd. Unfortunately, the music overall is not as rewarding as Green and Byrd's work of the period for Blue Note. Green is OK with a quintet that includes tenor saxophonist Harold Vick and organist Larry Young, but the material (mainly fairly simple funk riffs) is disappointing. Trumpeter Donald Byrd has a potentially strong group with both Jimmy Heath and Stanley Turrentine on tenors along with pianist Herbie Hancock and guitarist Kenny Burrell. However, the three- or four-voice Donald Byrd Singers and the arrangements by Claus Ogerman weigh down the date. Each album watered down its music to an extent in hopes of gaining commercial success, but neither really caught on. The results are interesting but somewhat forgettable.