These albums derive from when, very early in his career, Donald Byrd was fast becoming the most recorded jazzman ever. Rumours suggested that rarely a day went by when he wasn't engaged in jobbing sessions for those East Coast labels mainly recording out of Rudy Van Gelder's studio. In quick succession, Byrd replaced Clifford Brown with The Jazz Messengers (Byrd's Eye View was the Messengers plus Joe Gordon.) plus stints with the quintets of George Wallington and Horace Silver. Such Herculean activity doesn't necessarily equate with artistic achievement, but the fact is that the young Byrd vastly improved his straight ahead skills with every showing which afforded him a great start. In some ways, his trajectory was similar to that of Cannonball Adderley and, coincidentally, his recording debut proper was actually made in the company of the Adderley brothers on a date helmed by Kenny Clarke for Savoy.