Donald Byrd – Byrd Blows On Beacon Hill (Blue Note Tone Poet Series) 180g Vinyl

180-gram gatefold LP

Mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio from the original master tape

Plated and pressed at RTI

The Blue Note Tone Poet 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 (from Music Matters), a.k.a. the “Tone Poet,” on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels.

Recorded in 1956 for producer Tom Wilson’s short-lived Boston-based label Transition Records, Byrd Blows On Beacon Hillpresented trumpeter Donald Byrd in a relaxed and intimate quartet setting with his frequent collaborator Doug Watkins on bass along with Boston area musicians Ray Santisi on piano and Jim Zitano on drums.

The standards-heavy set was captured on a rainy spring afternoon in the Beacon Hill home of engineer Steve Fassett which provided a casual atmosphere that gave the album both its title and its easy-going charm. Byrd is at his lyrical best on Joe Sullivan’s tune “Little Rock Getaway” as well versions of “Polka Dots and Moonbeams,” “If I Love Again,” and “Stella by Starlight.” The trumpeter lays out to let the trio shine on “People Will Say We’re in Love” and “What’s New.”