His Majesty King Funk / up With Donald Byrd

by Grant Green

Product Description:

2 LP's on 1 CD: HIS MAJESTY KING FUNK/UP WITH DONALD BYRD.

Producer: Creed Taylor.

Compilation producer: Michael Lang.

Includes liner notes by Peter Leitch and Bill Milkowski.

Digitally remastered by Gary J. Mayo (Polygram Studios).

HIS MAJESTY KING FUNK:

Personnel: Grant Green (guitar); Harold Vick (tenor saxophone, flute); Larry Young (organ); Ben Dixon (drums); Candido Camero (bongos, congas).

Recorded in New York, New York on May 26, 1965. Originally released on Verve (8627).

UP WITH DONALD BYRD:

Personnel: Donald Byrd (trumpet); Claus Ogerman (conductor); The Donald Byrd Singers (vocals); Jimmy Heath, Stanley Turrentine (tenor saxophone); Herbie Hancock (piano); Kenny Burrell (guitar); Ron Carter, Bob Cranshaw (bass); Grady Tate (drums); Candido Camero (congas).

Recorded at A & R Recording, New York, New York on November 2, 3 & 6, 1964 and at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on December 16, 1964. Originally released on Verve (8609).

This special collection contains both the classic Grant Green album HIS MAJESTY KING FUNK and trumpeter Donald Byrd's UP WITH DONALD BYRD. Both are treasured recordings by two stellar artists who were at the head of their class in the mid '60s. Green's portion is a rousing quintet session that features the young organist Larry Young, underrated tenor man Harold Vick, renowned percussionist Candido Camero, and the groovy drummer Ben Dixon. As the title indicates, this is a delightfully funky session that features such danceable cuts as Green's "The Selma March," Dixon's solid "The Cantaloupe Woman," and the energetic "Daddy Grapes."

Byrd's UP is an equally exciting, but more pop-oriented, session. Along with Byrd, Jimmy Heath, Kenny Burrell, a young Herbie Hancock, Bob Cranshaw, and Grady Tate is a group of unidentified vocalists that contribute both lyrics and melodic backgrounds to mixed effect. Notable are the performances of Hancock's "Blind Man, Blind Man" and "Cantaloupe Island" and John Lee Hooker's "Boom, Boom." Also included are some eye-brow-raising readings of such pop hits as "House Of The Rising Sun" and "See, See, Rider." In all, both collections fill a solid spot in the catalog of two stellar artists.