The Mizell brothers (Fonce Mizell, Larry Mizell) collaborated with Donald Byrd on his best tracks.
'Dominoes' : 'Lanasana's Priestess' : 'Rock Creek Park' 'Steppin' Into Tomorrow'
Donald Byrd: "Donald Byrd's Soul-Disco Period of the 1970s"
Whenever a jazz artist turns to rock, R&B or pop, jazz's hardcore purists are bound to cry "sellout." In the 1970s, a number of talented jazz improvisers increased their sales considerably by embracing R&B, including George Benson, George Duke, Patrice Rushen and Roy Ayers. Like those artists, trumpeter Donald Byrd experienced scathing attacks by jazz critics when, in the mid-1970s, he moved from electric jazz-fusion to what was basically soul, funk and disco with jazz overtones.
Both Byrd's own albums of the mid-to-late 1970s and albums he produced for his band The Blackbirds (known for hits like "Rock Creek Park," "Walking In Rhythm," "Do it Fluid" and "Happy People") burned up the soul charts and earned him a whole new audience. As many jazz critics saw it, a Clifford Brown disciple had forsaken his roots and resorted to shameless musical prostitution. Unfortunately, such critics really didn't know enough about R&B to determine whether or not the new Byrd had artistic merit--and the fact is that his soul/disco experiments did. If Byrd's goal was to provide creative, interesting music for an R&B audience, he accomplished that goal nicely with "Change (Makes You Wanna Hustle)," "Dominoes," "Steppin' Into Tomorrow" [this is one helluva track] and other hits from that period.
In the late 1980s, Byrd returned to the type of straight-ahead jazz he'd done for Blue Note in the 1950s and 1960s. But for many R&B, funk and disco lovers, he would be best remembered for the 1970s recordings that critics had been quick to condemn. -- Alex Henderson in http://www.allmusic.com
Faze-O consisted of Keith "Chop Chop" Harrison (keyboards synthezier, perucssion, lead & background vocals), Tyrone "Flye" Crum (bass, background vocals), Ralph "Love" Aikens (guitar, lead and background vocals, talkbox) Roger "Dodger" Parker (drums, percussion) and Robert "Bip" Neal, Jr. (percussion, lead and background vocals).
"Riding High" was produced by what is referred to as "Tight Corporation", but there is very little doubt that it in fact was produced by the Ohio Players since they wrote and co-wrote every song on the album (particulary Clarence "Satch" Satchell"). OP are listed as arrangers and Robert "C.D." Jones is credited for playing congas. The single "Riding High" peaked at number 9 on the Billboard top 100 R & B list in 1978 and it was charted for eighteen weeks. Debuted 3/04/78.
By the time Faze-O released their second LP they obviously felt more secure since they handled more of the songwriting themselves. Only one track, "Who Loves You", was co-written by Clarence Satchell. "Satch" produced the album, played saxophone and trumpet, while fellow Ohio Players members Chet Willis and Billy Beck supplied Faze-O with additional guitar and keyboards, respectively. The single, once again the title track, "Good Thang" debuted 11/25/78 but peaked in 1979 at 43 and was charted for ten weeks.
Faze-O's third LP, once again had Clarence Satchell handling the production along with Faze-O lead singer and keyboardist Keith Harrison. "Satch" co-wrote "Ya-Ba-Da-Ba-Duzie" and "Let's Rock". Unlike the two previous albums, which were recorded in Chicago (from where I suspect Faze-O originates), "Breakin' The Funk" was recorded at 5th Floor Studios in Cincinnati, Ohio. The single "Breakin' The Funk" entered the charts on 11/03/79, peaked at number 63 and was charted for eight weeks.