Third Man Records and Blue Note have partnered to bring forth their 313 series of recordings by Detroit artists. The partnership showcases Thad Jones’ Detroit-New York Junction, Donald Byrd’s Electric Byrd, Elvin Jones’ Genesis, Kenny Cox and The Contemporary Jazz Quintet’s Multidirection, and Grant Green’s Live At Club Mozambique. All of the albums have been remastered and will be available in multi-color vinyl. Thad Jones’ Detroit-New York Junction and Donald Byrd’s Electric Byrd come out on July 21st. Elvin Jones’ Genesis and Kenny Cox and The Contemporary Jazz Quintet’s Multidirection follow on September 22nd. Grant Green’s Live At Club Mozambique has a release date of November 3rd. The albums can be pre-ordered now via Third Man and Blue Note. Don Was, who is the president of Blue Note Records and a native Detroiter, shared the importance of the partnership and collection in a press release. 

“There’s no better way for us to celebrate the abundance of Detroit talent on the Blue Note roster than this 313 collaboration with our hometown brothers and sisters at Third Man Records. Spin your turntables, close your eyes, and listen as the sweet analog sounds of Detroit Jazz roll thru your mind like the cool, clear waters of the River Rouge.”

The five albums are a good introduction to Detroit’s jazz history that goes as far back as the 1920s. 

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Detroit born Jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd passed on Monday in Delaware according to his nephew Alex Bugnon. Byrd’s jazz legacy started in the ’50’s with bebop when he joined Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. He performed and recorded with Sonny Rollins, Eric Dolphy, Max Roach and John Coltrane among others during this time. Byrd furthered his education by earning a Masters Degree from the Manhattan School of Music and he began teaching at various universities in the ’60’s. In the ’70’s he became known for his jazz/R&B output like his 1973 best-selling Black Byrd album that did commercially better than any other Blue Note release at the time. He also formed The Blackbyrds with some of his students. The band did well thanks to songs like “Happy Music,” “Rock Creek Park” and “Walking In Rhythm.” In the ’80s he created Donald Byrd & The 125th Street Band that had success with the dance classic “Love Has Come Around.” His jazz/R&B catalog is regularly sampled by various hip-hop producers most notably J.Dilla’s version of “Think Twice.” He was also included in two of Guru’s Jazzmazztazz projects even appearing in the video for “Lounging.” Byrd later earned a law degree and a doctorate. In 2000 he was named a Jazz Master by the NEA and that was also the year of his last recording on the Touchstone album that included Herbie Hancock whose career he helped in the ’60’s, longtime collaborator Pepper Adams, Teddy Charles and Jimmy Cobb.

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Donald Byrd began building his warm-toned trumpet as a youngster and was playing professionally with Lionel Hampton by the time he finished high school. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Wayne State University and a master’s from The Manhattan School of Music in the ’50’s. His skills as a serious hard bop trumpeter earned him a spot with Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers to replace his idol Clifford Brown. His recording career started during this time period and he made several records as a sideman and leader for the Prestige and Savoy labels. When his stint with the Messengers ended he started working with a pre-Miles Davis Herbie Hancock, Thelonius Monk, John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins. He formed his first group with saxophonist Pepper Adams and they recorded one of Byrd’s most celebrated albums, At The Half Note Cafe. A trip to Europe in 1963 extended his musical education because he studied with famed French composer/teacher/conductor Nadia Boulanger and jammed with Eric Dolphy two weeks before his passing.Byrd utilized his teaching abilities with jobs at Rutgers, Howard and New York University and some of his Howard students would become The Blackbyrds.Despite making a name for himself with the bop-style of jazz he became interested in reaching younger fans because of Mile Davis’ fusion period. Albums like Fancy Free and Ethiopian Knights were the beginning of his soul jazz sound but it was the entrance of Larry and Fonce Mizell that helped him achieve the most polished “blue collar jazz” style. In 1972 Blue Note released Byrd’s Black Byrd which was produced and mostly written by Larry Mizell. “Flight Time” and “Black Byrd” helped make the project the biggest selling album for Blue Note despite all the cacophony from jazz purist critics. The winning streak with the Mizell brothers continued with the albums, Street Lady, Steppin’ Into Tomorrow and Places and Spaces. “Lansana’s Priestess,” “Street Lady,” “Think Twice,” “Change (Makes You Wanna Hustle),” “Wind Parade,” and “Fallin’ (Like Dominoes)” all come from this trio of albums. Caricatures was Byrd’s last album for Blue Note and he also parted ways with the Mizell brothers before signing to Elektra. The success of his more popular albums did not stop his passion for education and in 1976 he finished law school and in 1982 he received a doctorate from Columbia Teachers College. Thank You…F.U.M.L (Funking Up My Life) was his first album for Elektra and Syreeta Wright is the singer of “Loving You.” “Love Has Come Around” is from his 1981 album Love Byrd and Isaac Hayes produced and played on the record with Byrd’s 125 Street N.Y.C. Band. In the ’80’s he recorded and taught but the music did not have the same impact as his earlier days. A return to bop occurred in 1990 on the Getting Down To Business album and he also appeared on “Lounging” from Guru’s first Jazzmatazz project, his second Jazzmatazz album and “Time Is Moving On” from the Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool album. In 2009 Donald Byrd was an artist-in-residence at Delaware University.