Listen along: Spotify | YouTube

A fun, joyous Donald Byrd record with catchy piano accompaniments, and drums that make me dance around in my chair. Exciting dialogues between trumpet and saxophone.

This album makes me think of a beautiful spring day, I walk out of the house and leisurely make my way to the bookstore or cofee shop, licking up the sunshine as I strut along. Perhaps part of that mental connection I have to thank to the “evergreen” modernist graphic design typical of Blue Note releases.

A warm and crisp recording to boot! (or so sounds the 2015 remaster on Spotify to my ears, anyways).

Favorite tracks:

• Ghana (Track 1) has a great drums solo and is a very strong opening track.
• Lex (Track 4) is another great one. fun solos, expressive drums, catchy piano.

I think I discovered this album as a listening recommendation in my TikTok feed.

Donald Byrd - Byrd in Flight (1960) cover art