1969's
Fancy Free marked the beginning of
Donald Byrd's move away from hard bop, staking out fusion-flavored territory that -- at this juncture -- owed more to
Miles Davis than the R&B-dominated jazz-funk
Byrd would embrace several years down the road. Recorded just a few months after
Davis' In a Silent Way,
Fancy Free finds
Byrd leading a large ensemble prominently featuring
Frank Foster on tenor,
Lew Tabackin or Jerry Dodgion on flute, and several percussionists. But the most important piece of the puzzle is
Duke Pearson's electric piano, the first time
Byrd utilized the instrument.
Pearson dominates the texture of the group sound, which makes the entirety of the session seem farther outside the realm of funky hard bop than it actually is. However, that's not to say that
Fancy Free isn't a clear break with
Byrd's past -- especially the two
Byrd originals that open the album. The title track -- which later became one of
Byrd's more covered compositions -- contrasts
Pearson's spacy musings with a busy, funky percussion groove, and there's a loose, open feel to the improvisations that breaks with hard bop conventions. The warm ballad "I Love the Girl" has a similarly airy feel, and at eight and a half minutes, is the shortest cut; clearly
Byrd wanted an open framework for exploration. The other two numbers are more traditional hard bop compositions by former
Byrd students, which -- although funky and full of improvisations -- can't help but feel more tethered than their predecessors. Still, even if it isn't his most adventurous fusion outing,
Fancy Free is the rare
Donald Byrd album that holds appeal for rare-groove fanatics and traditionalists alike. ~ Steve Huey