For pioneering jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, who played in the Miles Davis Quintet in the '60s, 1973's Head Hunters was a massive success and a landmark album in jazz fusion. He led his funky backing group, the Headhunters, with heavy electric synths on a record that outsold even Davis' fusion masterpiece, Bitches Brew. The Headhunters struck out on their own in the years following the album, and while Hancock is not to be heard on all their recordings, the group without him still brought the funk in a deep, spacey way.
The classic lineup that plays on Hancock's follow-up to Head Hunters, 1974's Thrust, with new drummer, Mike Clark, as well as guitarist DeWayne "Blackbyrd" McKnight, whose guitar-playing would appear on Survival of the Fittest, the 1975 Hancock-produced Headhunters LP. All the elements herein make for a deep space-funk melting of the minds: McKnight, who would also feature on Hancock's Man-Child and Flood releases later that year, also contributed lead vocals on some tracks.
The Headhunters would go on to record 1977's Straight from the Gate, and later reunited in 1998 with keyboards from both Hancock and Billy Childs on Return of the Headhunters! Jackson and percussionist Bill Summers also featured in a revised Headhunters lineup for 2003's Evolution Revolution. Hancock continues to record and perform, most recently releasing River: The Joni Letters in 2007.As far as dan's team goes, he is looking at 9-0 in a showdown with the Hebrew Hammers in week ten for a chance to break Cura's coveted record. One that we both agreed only a few years ago would last longer than Joe DiMaggio's hit record.