All-Analog 180g Vinyl LP of Donald Byrd's Kofi: Blue Note Tone Poet Reissue Mastered From the Original Master Tapes by Kevin Gray and Pressed at RTI

Drawn from two sessions recorded in December 1969 and December 1970, and not first released until 1995, Kofi found Donald Byrd in the early stages of his transformation from top-notch hard bop trumpeter to fusion pioneer. Byrd had already begun to move away from a pure hard bop sound with his album Fancy Free in the Spring of 1969, and the two Kofi sessions straddled the recording of his adventurous fusion album Electric Byrd. The first Kofi session subtly explored a new realm of sounds on Byrd's originals "Kofi" and "Fufu" with producer Duke Pearson's electric piano shimmering underneath textured arrangements featuring Lew Tabackin on flute and tenor saxophone, Frank Foster on tenor saxophone, William Campbell on trombone, Ron Carter on acoustic bass, Bob Cranshaw on electric bass, and Airto Moreira on drums. The following 1970 session produced two more vibey Byrd originals—"Perpetual Love" and "Elmina"—adding Wally Richardson on guitar and Mickey Roker on drums with Moreira playing percussion along with Dom Um Romão.

The Tone Poet Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series was born out of Blue Note President Don Was' admiration for the exceptional audiophile Blue Note LP reissues presented by Music Matters. Was brought Joe Harley, a.k.a. the "Tone Poet," on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels.

Extreme attention to detail has been paid to getting these right in every conceivable way, from the jacket graphics and printing quality to superior LP mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray to superb 180g audiophile LP pressings by Record Technology, Inc. Every aspect of these Tone Poet releases is done to the highest possible standard. It means that you will never find a superior version. This is IT.

This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray (Cohearent Audio) from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at Record Technology, Inc. (RTI), and packaged in a deluxe tip-on jacket.

Musicians:
Donald Byrd - Trumpet
Duke Pearson - Piano
Lew Tabackin - Flute, Tenor Saxophone
Frank Foster - Tenor Saxophone
William Campbell - Trombone
Ron Carter - Acoustic Bass
Bob Cranshaw - Electric Bass
Airto Moreira - Drums
Wally Richardson - Guitar
Mickey Roker - Drums
Dom Um Romao - Percussion

Features:
• Blue Note Tone Poet Series
• Curated by Music Matters co-founder Joe Harley
• Audiophile-quality 180g Stereo vinyl LP
• All-analog mastering (direct from the master tapes) by Kevin Gray
• Manufactured at Record Technology Incorporated
• Packaged in a Deluxe tip-on jacket with a booklet.