Liner Notes

Primarily featuring a state-of-the-art band with trumpeter Donald Byrd , pianist Herbie Hancock , bassist Butch Warren , and drummer Tony Williams , the set presents a dizzying array of styles from bristling post-bop (“Vertigo”) to sophisticated funk (“Dusty Foot”) to slow blues (“Yams”). The hard bop centerpiece “Formidable” was drawn from an earlier 1959 session featuring Byrd, pianist Walter Davis Jr. , bassist Paul Chambers , and drummer Pete LaRoca .

Two months before Jackie McLean recorded his inside-out masterpiece One Step Beyond in 1963, the alto saxophonist was in the studio recording a dynamic quintet session that would eventually be released as Vertigo as part of the LT Series in 1980.