The precocious and prodigious drummer and composer Tony Williams had already joined the Miles Davis Quintet and participated in numerous landmark Blue Note recordings including Herbie Hancock Empyrean Isles, Eric Dolphy Out to Lunch, Andrew Hill Point of Departure, Jackie McLean One Step Beyond, and Grachan Moncur III Evolution by the time he recorded his own adventurous debut album, Life Time, in August 1964, when he was still just 18 years old. Williams had no intention of playing it safe on his maiden voyage as a leader and set forth to document his uncompromising expression on this program of innovative original compositions. Side 1 presents the expansive two movement suite "2 Pieces of One" with the drummer joined by tenor saxophonist Sam Rivers and bassists Gary Peacock and Richard Davis. Side 2 opens with the jaunty "Tomorrow Afternoon" featuring Williams, Rivers, and Peacock. Williams plays a variety of percussion on the freely improvised "Memory" which features Herbie Hancock on piano and Bobby Hutcherson on vibraphone, and lays out entirely on the ruminative piano-bass duet "Barb's Song to the Wizard" performed by Hancock and Ron Carter which closes the album.

The Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series was born out of Blue Note President Don Was' admiration for the exceptional audiophile Blue Note LP reissues presented by Music Matters. Was brought Joe Harley, a.k.a. the "Tone Poet," on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels.

Extreme attention to detail has been paid to getting these right in every conceivable way, from the jacket graphics and printing quality to superior LP mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray to superb 180g audiophile LP pressings by Record Technology, Inc. Every aspect of these Tone Poet releases is done to the highest possible standard. It means that you will never find a superior version. This is IT.

This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at Record Technology, Inc. (RTI), and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.