Japanese import
MIZELL BROTHERS MONTH (APRIL 2026)
As the weather warms, I lately find myself drifting towards '70s jazz-funk albums such as Music Is My Sanctuary and the sort found on the Capitol Rare compilations. Then friend o' the blog Dirk Digglinator pointed out that many of those "summery" grooves I dig come from the writing and production of brothers Larry & Fonce Mizell who, in my vivid imagination, always wore sunglasses when seated at the studio's mixing console. And since we've already got high temperatures in the 90s here in San Antonio, let's get out the sunscreen and spin some Mizell Brothers discs while throwing some well-seasoned brisket in the smoker.
I don't know exactly what it is about this stuff that makes it summer music for me. Lots of tight, hypnotic, infectious, shimmering mid-tempo grooves featuring wah-wah pedals, silky keyboards, and basslines that refuse to sit still. Grooves are tight but never in a hurry. I can imagine I'm cutting through the morning fog into the sunshine as I drive my convertible along the coast. It all sounds the same yet it all sounds different. So what if DownBeat gave it a "tepid quasi-funk" label? We like what we like and judging by chart positions, I'm far from the only who enjoys these grooves.
There's not much playing from Byrd on this one; many tunes could just as easily been credited to saxophonist Gary Bartz. Then again, this album is all about feel, not blistering solos or virtuoso flexing. The occasional, wordless, high-flying whistle register vocals from Lorraine Kenner are impressive but often distracting. There I go nit-picking again. The vocals must not have bothered younger generations as the album became a sampling goldmine decades later, proving that sometimes a song’s true destiny is to be chopped up by DJs who weren’t even born when Byrd recorded the thing.
Reviews/ratings:
- Record World: "Byrd's best set yet"
- Billboard: "Producer Larry Mizell has himself in for additional points by contributing five tunes, so the LP really carries his imprimateur [sic]."
- DownBeat (no rating): "faceless tepid quasi-funk"
- The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
- US Billboard 200: #42
- Billboard Jazz: #2
- Billboard R&B: #7
- CashBox: #42
- Record World Jazz: #1
Tracks: Think Twice was released as a single and bubbled under the Hot 100 at #104. Shoulda charted higher but you already knew that. It's fantastic along with Makin' It and the mixed-meter Design A Nation. But really, you should just sit back and let this whole thing simmer as you catch some rays out back while minding the smoker. 😎
Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None, other than the summer vibes mentioned above.
Previously revisited for the blog:
Love Byrd (1981)
A New Perspective (1964)
No comments:
Post a Comment