Presenting The Gary Byrd Experience (CD)

Having been a close collaborator with Stevie Wonder for years, 1972's Gary Byrd Experience represents the talented musician's opportunity to step into the spotlight with his own group. Best known as a DJ working at New York station WWRL, Byrd's relationship with Wonderbegan in the '60s and continued through Wonder's prolific years in the next decade, when he helped co-write “Black Man” and “Ghetto Village Land.” Stepping out on his own with this album, Byrd's work sparkles with funky R&B flavors and early hip-hop influences. With a message of black empowerment, Byrd created slick, catchy songs like “Black is So Beautiful” and “Shining Black Prince” that featured him delivering spoken-word raps over the music a la Gil Scott-Heron and The Last Poets. Record collectors and hip-hop heads will also recognize the two-part track“Soul Traveling,” an ode to Byrd's contemporaries like Curtis Mayfield and Al Green, which was famously sampled by Large Professor for Nas' debut single “Halftime”