Donald Byrd - At The Half Note Cafe Vol. 1 (2015) [Hi-Res]

Situated at 289 Hudson Street in New York City, the Half Note Cafe quickly established itself as the venue at which to catch some of the best up and coming jazz talents of the age. Its reputation was further enhanced with a series of live recordings conducted at the club, with John Coltrane, Wes Montgomery and the Art Farmer Quartet among those artists to subsequently release live albums. And then there was Donald Byrd, whose band comprised Donald (trumpet), Pepper Adams (saxophone), Duke Pearson (piano), Laymon Jackson (bass) and Lex Humphries (drums) and who gathered at the Half Note on 11 November 1960 to record their show. With local DJ Ruth Mason acting as MC, the show kicked off with the ten minute plus My Girl Shirl and closed some two hours later with When Sunny Gets Blue. When subsequently released on vinyl, the show had been mashed up somewhat, with the two albums showing no reference to the original running order. That does not detract from what is an excellent album, with its later companion volume equally enthralling and entertaining. First class performances all round, as you would expect, make this a compelling album.

„As Rudy Van Gelder continued to establish himself as the greatest studio engineer of jazz, he started to venture out into the nightclub scene of 1960s New York City to document the bands from the Blue Note label that were growing by strength in numbers and high-quality hard to post-bop. Donald Byrd's groups were changing and evolving, but by 1960 had reverted to two years prior with the return of baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams as his main foil. In early 1960 Byrd was working with Jackie McLean and Hank Mobley, but by autumn and winter Adams had reentered the picture, joining holdovers pianist Duke Pearson and drummer Lex Humphries. Some of this material sees the spotlight on live performances at the Half Note Cafe from the previous studio recording, Byrd in Flight, while other numbers are fresh interpretations of standards and more new material from Byrd and Pearson. Bassist Laymon Jackson spent some prominent time with Byrd, Lou Donaldson, and Nat Adderley before professionally fading from sight, but he is an excellent anchor for his bandmates, and one who deserves close inspection. Pearson's animated and excited 'My Girl Shirl,' the cute ditty 'Child's Play,' and Byrd's jaunty 'Soulful Kiddy' are the reprised tracks, and kick off the set. They are a quintessential hard bop sandwich with a soul-jazz filling spiced by chopsticks piano. Two other tracks are penned by Pearson: the most famous of his works, the quick and bright 'Jeannine,' driven by the pianist's two-fisted comping chords; and 'Chant,' which is the most laid-back yet soulful selection. A pure Byrd contributes the fun, wholly blues-inspired 'Pure D. Funk,' alternating at will from quick waltz to slow blues, while 'Kimyas' also exploits triplet figures in a chunky, popping Latin rhythm, very hip à la the best Art Blakey-led bands. 'Cecile' is the most extravagant and moody blues at nearly 15 minutes, while standards 'Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea' -- a perfect feature for the cool bass playing of Jackson -- and the ballad 'A Portrait of Jennie' display the unflappable or tender side of Byrd, respectively, with additional chordal inventions from Pearson. It's clear that Byrd is an increasingly stronger player and leader at this time. While the role of Adams is somewhat sublimated in this group, he is totally a team player in tandem with the trumpeter on most melodies. Adams himself emerged, and his talent came to full fruition, when Byrd was his ostensible sideman for the 1958 group that recorded the classic Riverside album 10 to 4 at the Five Spot. Regardless of ephemeral leadership roles, this band clicks, runs fully on all cylinders, and expands these pieces averaging about ten minutes in length. Of course, the production values by Van Gelder are impeccable, and the collective playing is consistently inspired. This recording should be on the top of your list of modern mainstream jazz, and ranks very high among Byrd's many musical achievements.“ (Michael G. Nastos)

Donald Byrd, trumpet
Duke Pearson, piano
Pepper Adams, baritone saxophone
Laymon Jackson, bass
Lex Humphries, drums

Recorded live at the Half Note Cafe, New York City on November 11, 1960
Engineered by Rudy Van Gelder
Produced by Alfred Lion

Digitally remastered