Buster Williams – Pinnacle

A sought-after slice of mid-1970s spiritual jazz, jazz-funk and fusion, Buster Williams’ Pinnacle was released on Muse Records in 1975 and marked Williams’ first album as a leader. This copy is the original U.S. Muse Records MR 5080 pressing, not a later reissue.

Already renowned for his work with Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis and other major figures in modern jazz, Williams assembled a remarkable band for Pinnacle. The lineup includes Woody Shaw on trumpet, Sonny Fortune on saxophones and flute, Earl Turbinton on saxophone and bass clarinet, Onaje Allan Gumbs on acoustic/electric piano and synthesizers, Billy Hart on drums, and Guilherme Franco on percussion, with Williams on acoustic and Fender bass. The album was recorded at Blue Rock Studios in New York during August 1975.

Musically, Pinnacle sits in a fascinating space between post-bop, jazz-funk, spiritual jazz and the exploratory electric jazz associated with Herbie Hancock's Mwandishi period. Williams and drummer Billy Hart had both been part of Hancock's Mwandishi ensemble, and that adventurous spirit carries into this record. Onaje Allan Gumbs' electric piano, Moog synthesizer and ARP textures give the music a distinctly cosmic 1970s atmosphere, while Williams' bass provides the deep rhythmic foundation throughout.

The five-track program stretches out with “The Hump,” “Noble Ego,” “Pinnacle,” “Tayamisha,” and the expansive “Batuki.” Williams composed and arranged most of the album, while Gumbs contributed “Batuki.” The extended performances—“The Hump” runs more than eleven minutes and “Batuki” more than fourteen—give this exceptional group plenty of room to develop the music.

Original copies of Pinnacle have become genuinely collectible. The album went decades without another vinyl pressing, and surviving 1975 Muse MR 5080 originals have attracted substantial interest among collectors of spiritual jazz, jazz-funk and 1970s fusion. A 2022 VG+/VG+ example sold for $149, while another copy with a substantially weaker sleeve sold for $36; current dealer asking prices for originals can run considerably higher.