| Unfinished Business | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by the Blackbyrds | ||||
| Released | November 1976 | |||
| Genre | R&B, Jazz-funk | |||
| Label | Fantasy | |||
| Producer | Donald Byrd | |||
| The Blackbyrds chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
Unfinished Business is the fourth studio album by the American R&B/jazz-funk fusion group the Blackbyrds, released in 1976 on Fantasy Records. This album peaked at No. 6 on the US Billboard Top R&B Albums and No. 34 on the Top Pop LPs charts. Unfinished Business has also been certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.
Background
The album was produced by musician Donald Byrd. Singles included "Time Is Movin'" and "Party Land", the former of which peaked at No. 15 on the US Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart, while the latter reached No. 30 on US Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart.
Saxophonist Stephen Johnson, who had played on the band's previous studio album City Life, was absent from this album, and the position was consequently filled by Wesley Jackson. Johnson would return to the band for their following record Action.
Track listing
Song credits and timings taken from original LP.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Time Is Movin'" | Keith Killgo | 4:42 |
| 2. | "In Life" | Kevin Toney, Orville Saunders, Killgo, Joe Hall | 5:12 |
| 3. | "Enter In" | Hall | 4:38 |
| 4. | "You've Got That Something" | Donald Byrd, Toney | 4:18 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5. | "Party Land" | Byrd, Saunders | 5:16 |
| 6. | "Lady" | Hall | 6:30 |
| 7. | "Unfinished Business" | Toney | 5:54 |
Personnel
Credits taken from LP liner notes.
The Blackbyrds
- Kevin Toney – keyboards
- Orville Saunders – guitar
- Wesley Jackson – saxophone, flute
- Joe Hall – bass
- Keith Killgo – drums
with:
- Lew McCreary – bass trombone
- George Bohanon, Charles Loper – trombones
- Chuck Findley, Steve Madaio, Gary Grant, Nolan Smith – trumpets, flugelhorns
- Alan Robinson, Marilyn Robinson, Vince DeRosa – french horn
- William Green, Jackie Kelso (The Block Boy Orchestra) – tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, flute
- The Blackbyrds, Mildred Lane (soloist), Jerry Spikes, Charles Barnett, Kenny Moore, Marti McCall, John Lehman, Alex Brown, Myrna Matthews Bill Medford, Jim Gilstrap – vocals
- Soloists
- Ernie Watts – flute
- Tommy Morgan – harmonica
- Ray Parker – guitar
- Technical
- George Bohanon – contractor
- Wade Marcus – arrangement and conducting
- Jim Nipar – recording engineers, mixing
- Serge Reyes – recording engineers, mixing assistant
- Phil Carroll – art direction, cover
- Phil Bray – cover, liner photos
- Lance Anderson – lettering
References
- "The Blackbyrds: Unfinished Business". AllMusic. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
- ^ The Blackbyrds: Unfinished Business. Fantasy Records. November 1976.
- ^ "The Blackbyrds: Billboard Charts (Archived)". AllMusic. Retrieved January 14, 2025 – via archive.org.
- "The Blackbyrds". RIAA. Retrieved January 14, 2025.