Clifford Brown

Clifford Brown All Stars - Best Coast Jazz +1 (1954) {EmArcy Japan PHCE-3062 rel 1996}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 267 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 102 Mb
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© 1954, 1996 EmArcy / Mercury Japan | PHCE-3062 | 24/96 mastering
Jazz / Bop / Cool

Clifford Brown: "Best Coast Jazz" is the Five Star bookend session to "Clifford Brown All Stars", both having been recorded at the same session in Los Angeles in 1954. On the vinyl LP, each song took up a side, allowing for plenty of blowing room. "BCJ" would be released in 1955. One year later, Clifford Brown (and pianist Richie Powell and wife) would be dead from a car wreck on the Penn Turnpike during a rainstorm. Thus altering the course of jazz trumpet history in one tragic act. "CBAS" would be hurriedly released following the accident and we would once again shake our heads at the tremendous loss of trumpet genius Clifford Brown.

Clifford Brown - More Memorable Tracks (1953) {Blue Note Japan TOCJ-1605 rel 1996}
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© 1953, 1996 Blue Note / Toshiba-EMI Japan | TOCJ-1605
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Trumpet

Clifford Brown More Memorable Tracks (1996 Japanese 9-track CD of alternate takes, recorded June-August 1953 [mono] for Blue Note and previously unissued. The disc is mastered at 20bit 88.2kHz for optimum quality sound, with Japanese picture booklet and matching obi TOCJ-1605).

Although Clifford Brown did a phenomenal amount of commercial recordings during his all too brief lifetime (he died prior to his 26th birthday in a car crash that also took the life of his quintet's pianist Richie Powell, Bud's younger brother), relatively few of the recordings he made were on stage. Fortunately, this CD includes performances from two 1956 broadcasts from the old Basin Street club in New York City, and two tracks from a Carnegie Hall concert the previous year. Although the MC talks over some of the music and the fidelity is typical for Airchecks preserved from the era (distorted rhythm section, barely audible piano and bass), the strong playing of both Brown and tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins still comes through the noisy clutter.

There are two schools of thought regarding this Clifford Brown with strings session. Brownie plays quite beautifully and shows off his warm tone on such numbers as "Portrait of Jenny," "Memories of You," "Embraceable You" and "Stardust." But on the other hand the string arrangements by Neal Hefti border on muzak and Brown never really departs from the melody. So the trumpeter's tone is the only reason to acquire this disc which to this listener is a slight disappointment, not living up to its potential.

Clifford Brown - The Clifford Brown Big Band In Paris (1953) {Prestige OJCCD-359-2 rel 1989}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 195 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 115 Mb
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© 1953, 1989 Prestige / Fantasy / OJC | OJCCD-359-2
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Big Band / Trumpet

Although Lionel Hampton forbid his sidemen from recording during their trip to France in 1953, many of the musicians fortunately ignored his orders; the band broke up soon anyway. Trumpeter Clifford Brown is heard on this LP mostly with a big band actually put together by Gigi Gryce. A few of these tracks are excerpts but the two takes of "Brownskins" and "Keeping up with Jonesy" are fairly long as is a nearly eight-minute "Chez Moi." The music is not essential but Brownie did not live long enough to record anything less than excellent.