Charles Kynard - Afro-Disiac (2017) [Hi-Res]

The rarest of all Charles Kynard albums – and a real standout groover from the classic funk days of Prestige! The album's a really creative outing – with arrangements by Richard Fritz that take the usual small combo Prestige sound to new heights – twisting and turning the rhythms past the usual heavy foot on the bass motif! Fritz wrote the bulk of the tracks, and they've got a modal grooving mode – with a mixture of hard rhythms and dancing organ, guitar, and tenor from Houston Person that's almost in a Funk Inc mode – with lots of sharp changes. The rest of the group is great – Bernard Purdie's on drums, Jimmy Lewis plays Fender bass, and Grant Green is on guitar.

„On this 1970 session, Kynard was backed by a first-rate quartet of musicians that often appeared on Prestige soul-jazz dates of the early 1970s: Houston Person on tenor sax, Grant Green on guitar, Jimmy Lewis on bass, and Bernard Purdie on drums. Most of the original material was supplied not by Kynard or the band, but by Kynard's friend Richard Fritz, who penned four of the six tunes. Kynard's one of the more understated soul-jazz organists of the era, and shares space pretty generously with the other musicians on these basic, funky vamps. The title track has an edginess in the riff that makes it stand out a bit; "Bella Donna" has a melody not far from "Wade on the Water" in places; Jimmy Lewis gets a real fat walking Fender bass tone on "Trippin'" (which he co-wrote with Kynard); and "Chanson du Nuit" has a light bossa nova feel which contrasts pleasingly with the rest of the set.“ (Richie Unterberger, AMG)

Charles Kynard, organ, keyboards
Houston Person, tenor saxophone
Grant Green, guitar
Jimmy Lewis, bass
Bernard Purdie, drums
Richard Fritz, arranger (tracks 1, 2, 4 & 6)

Recorded April 6, 1970 at Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
Produced by Bob Porter

Digitally remastered