Craft Recordings and Jazz Dispensary proudly unveil the latest release in their sought-after Top Shelf series: 1975’s City Life, from the legendary jazz-funk ensemble, The Blackbyrds. Arriving May 30th, the chart-topping album features such delicacies as the effervescent “Happy Music,” the dancefloor-ready title track, and the group’s heavily sampled signature hit, “Rock Creek Park.”
Celebrating City Life’s golden anniversary, this reissue returns the album to vinyl in style, with all-analog mastering by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, 180-gram vinyl pressed at RTI, and a gatefold tip-on jacket. Additionally, a deluxe digital edition of City Life will be available across streaming platforms on May 30th, featuring five bonus tracks, including such rarities as a disco mix of “Happy People,” a 12-inch version of “Rock Creek Park,” and a previously-unreleased extended cut of “All I Ask.”
The story of The Blackbyrds begins with the celebrated trumpet player and vocalist, Donald Byrd (1932–2013). Rising to prominence during the hard bop era, Byrd played alongside a who’s who of jazz legends, including John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Thelonious Monk, and Herbie Hancock. By the turn of the ‘70s, however, Byrd found himself at the forefront of the fusion movement. Working with pioneering producers Larry and Fonce Mizell (better known as the Mizell Brothers), Byrd scored a string of hit records, beginning with 1973’s Black Byrd.
That same year, while serving as a professor at Howard University’s music department, Byrd encouraged several of his students to form their own group, in what was meant to be a real-world lesson in the music industry. Inspired by the title of their professor’s hugely popular debut, the fusion ensemble—including vocalist/drummer Keith Killgo, keyboardist Kevin Toney, and bass guitarist Joe Hall—called themselves The Blackbyrds. Before long, the group signed to Fantasy Records and released a pair of bestselling albums (both produced by Byrd) in 1974: The Blackbyrds and Flying Start.
Within a year, The Blackbyrds were soaring with their first Top 10 single on Billboard’s Hot 100, “Walking in Rhythm” (off Flying Start), and a growing fanbase that was grooving to their soulful blend of R&B, funk, and jazz. The group, which now included guitarist Orville Saunders and saxophonist Stephen Johnson, returned to the studio with their mentor, primed to record the biggest record of their career. Joining them were such esteemed guests as saxophonists Gary Bartz and Ernie Watts, vocalist Patrice Rushen, trombonist George Bohanon, harmonica player Tommy Morgan, and singer Merry Clayton (known best for her work in the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter”), who lent her magic to “Rock Creek Park.”
Released in November 1975, The Blackbyrds’ City Life features an array of musical shades—from the pop-forward “Happy Music” and the balladry of “Love So Fine,” to the funky soul of the Mizell-brothers-penned “Hash and Eggs” and the smooth-as-silk “Flying High.” Throughout, the musicians’ unity as an ensemble is undeniable—particularly as they jam through selections like “Thankful ‘Bout Yourself” and “City Life.” The true standout track on the album, however, is “Rock Creek Park.” Praised by AllMusic as “One of the pinnacles of ’70s jazz-funk,” the bouncy track remains a signature hit for The Blackbyrds, while it has been sampled over the decades by dozens of artists—from trip-hop pioneers like Massive Attack (“Blue Lines”) to such legendary names in rap and hip-hop as De La Soul (“The Art of Getting Jumped”), Nas (“Get Down”), NWA (“Quiet on Tha Set”), and Eric B. & Rakim (“The R”).
You can pre-order the City Life reissue vinyl here.
