Drawn from two sessions recorded in December 1969 and December 1970, and not first released until 1995, Kofi found Donald Byrd in the early stages of his transformation from top-notch hard bop trumpeter to fusion pioneer. Byrd had already begun to move away from a pure hard bop sound with his album Fancy Free in the Spring of 1969, and the two Kofi sessions straddled the recording of his adventurous fusion album Electric Byrd. The first Kofi session subtly explored a new realm of sounds on Byrd's originals "Kofi" and "Fufu" with producer Duke Pearson's electric piano shimmering underneath textured arrangements featuring Lew Tabackin on flute and tenor saxophone, Frank Foster on tenor saxophone, William Campbell on trombone, Ron Carter on acoustic bass, Bob Cranshaw on electric bass, and Airto Moreira on drums. The following 1970 session produced two more vibey Byrd originals—"Perpetual Love" and "Elmina"—adding Wally Richardson on guitar and Mickey Roker on drums with Moreira playing percussion along with Dom Um Romão.
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 tip-on jacket.
The playing here is no less than stellar, with seasoned veterans such as Ron Carter and Airto Moreira giving Byrd more than ample support to stretch out and soulfully foreshadow elements of future recordings.-Rob Theakston, AllMusic.com, 4/5 stars
Features
• 180g Vinyl LP
• Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series
• Mastered from the Original Analog Tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio
• Produced by Joe Harley
• Pressed at RTI
• Deluxe Tip-On Jacket
Musicians
Donald Byrd trumpet
William Campbell trombone
Lew Tabackin flute, tenor sax
Frank Foster tenor sax
Wally Richardson guitar
Duke Pearson electric piano
Ron Carter bass
Bob Cranshaw electric bass
Mickey Roker drums
Airto drums, percussion
Dom Um Romao percussion
Selections
Side One:
1. Kofi
2. Fufu
Side Two:
1. Perpetual Love
2. Elmina