Donald Byrd
Free Form (Blue Note Rudy Van Gelder Edition 90842)

Nothing too "free form" about Free Form, at least in the Ornette Coleman sense, but it's certainly freewheeling and frequently beautiful. Donald Byrd was in his prime on this 1961 album, which features the first studio encounter between Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, and, surprisingly, the only one between Shorter and Byrd. Billy Higgins and Butch Warren comprise the rhythm section.

It's a stellar outing for Byrd, not quite into the bold larger-band experimentation that would define his true masterpieces (A New Perspective is still the best, overly familiar though it may be), but instantly tappable as a cut above other Blue Note quintet recordings of the same era. Blue Note released many, many records just like Free Form, but the compositions and performances here make it stand out right away.

"Pentacostal Feeling" is a high-steppin' bop to church, dressed in your best duds to impress God and, more importantly, that sweet-ass single mom who you know could use some of your good lovin'. "Night Flower" is a "'Round Midnight"-styled Herbie Hancock ballad that features some of Byrd's most purely gorgeous playing. Real pure and good.

"Nai Nai" is a nice cool-bop stroller that showcases Shorter with some short bursting solos that nearly overpower the laid-back mood, only to retreat just when you think he's gettin' angry. "French Spice" shows Byrd taking on the modal approach of Miles's Kind of Blue and Oliver Nelson's Blues and the Abstract Truth, but with some startling hard-bop tags that can't be resisted. Byrd is just blisterin' and Hancock laying down an extended solo that shows how inventive he can be with simple chords. Tight-ass drumming from Higgins on his one.

"Free Form" is enchanting like a good haunted house, with Higgins getting downright audacious underneath some seriously spooky interplay between Byrd and Shorter. It's rare for a jazz tune to brood, but this one does. Hancock seems to be literally trying to tickle the piano.

"Three Wishes," a snaky, cerebral waltz not on the original LP, is included as a final track on the CD version. I'd love to see someone learning to waltz to this one. Nothing like a Herbie Hancock piano solo to keep you focused on counting your steps.

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Review by La Fée