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The Blackbyrds were a jazz-funk group with thick R&B streaks running down their backs. Assembled by <a href="spotify:artist:3ZUZYvTkSr7kJQyAXVpqaL">Donald Byrd</a> in 1974, the group's original members -- percussionist Pericles "Perk" Jacobs, Jr., drummer Keith Killgo, keyboardist <a href="spotify:artist:1tTgW7qTHbI2rpdp2MrGZ0">Kevin Toney</a>, reeds player Allan Barnes, bassist <a href="spotify:artist:2eQIk2Ls0mGVzcDtpnj9N7">Joe Hall</a>, guitarist Barney Perry -- were mined from Howard University's music department, where the doctor and jazz legend was an instructor. (Other key players included guitarist Orville Saunders and saxophonist/flautist Steve Johnson.) During the Blackbyrds' nearly decade-long existence, the group cut a handful of LPs (1973's The Blackbyrds, 1974's Flying Start, 1975's City Life, 1976's Unfinished Business, 1977's Action, 1980's Better Days); scored films (1975's Cornbread, Earl and Me); and supported artists like <a href="spotify:artist:5xLSa7l4IV1gsQfhAMvl0U">B.B. King</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6RWnslEkqboHbDg0OUabe5">Mandrill</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:0W498bDDNlJIrYMKXdpLHA">Roberta Flack</a>. "Walking in Rhythm," "Rock Creek Park," and "Happy Music" are their three best-known cuts; they have remained underground club classics, and they have been kept alive, in part, through sampling. The group's catalog has been overhauled and reissued a number of times; multiple best-ofs have been released (<a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Fantasy%22">Fantasy</a>'s Greatest Hits is the strongest and most thorough), and most of the group's full-length output has been put out on CD through two-fers. As far as outside activities were considered, Barney Perry released a solo album under the name Blair in 1978 (through his own Solar Sound imprint). The remaining members' involvements are far too extensive to list. Keyboard player <a href="spotify:artist:1tTgW7qTHbI2rpdp2MrGZ0">Kevin Toney</a> died on March 18, 2024, at the age of 70. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi
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