Strut releases Byard Lancaster’s 1992 soulful spiritual jazz album ‘My Pure Joy’ on vinyl for the first time

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Strut releases Byard Lancaster’s 1992 soulful spiritual jazz album ‘My Pure Joy’ on vinyl for the first time

Following last year’s phenomenal compilation Soul Love Now and a number of revisited album releases from groundbreaking artists like Oneness Of Juju (aka Juju), Lon Moshe, and others, London’s Strut Records continues it’s ongoing spotlight on the now considered legendary Richmond, Virginia label Black Fire (run by Jimmy Gray) with a reissue of the late Philadelphia reedman Byard Lancaster’s 1992 soulful spiritual jazz recording My Pure Joy. Originally released on CD three years after it was recorded, due the label’s financial challenges, this marks the first time this album has ever been released on vinyl.

Known as one of the most adventurous players among the 1960s New York avant-garde scene, and later in Paris during the 1970s, Lancaster always had a strong soulful side to his free-flowing playing style, with a personal mantra “From A Love Supreme to The Sex Machine!”. This signature approach is strongly evident on this brilliant eleven-track 1992 recording, with the album spanning a lot of territory musically, blending together a mixture of fiery free jazz solos, African-rooted rhythms, funky danceable grooves, and soulful tones. Lancaster has been a part of numerous masterful recordings, however this album is right up there with some of his best work he’s ever produced.

Backing Lancaster on the session is a number of superb Philadelphia-based musicians including percussionist Keno Speller and Baba Robert Crowder (drummer for Olatunji and Art Blakey), and Lagos native Tunde Kuboye, who leads the group on standout track “Drummers From Ibadan”.

Overall, this is a great recording that highlights all the many facets and dimensions of Byard Lancaster’s adventurous and forward-thinking approach to music. Another well-crafted reissue by Strut Records in what has become a fantastic and essential series on the Black Fire label.