Search - Clifford Brown :: The Best Of Clifford Brown-The Blue Note Years

My favorite jazz album of all time

grimson@teleport.com | 11/05/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Hey, I have around 100 albums, from Sidney Bechet through Albert Ayler to Don Byron. This selection of stuff by Clifford Brown at Blue Note is my favorite. Every note is magical."

Clifford Brown on Blue note

S. Finefrock | Raleigh, NC | 10/17/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"While the annals of jazz history are filled with tragedy, there are few examples as tragic as the early demise of Clifford Brwon. While many jazz greats succumbed to drugs and hard lifestyles, Brown was a straight shooter whose death was from the traffic accident that also claimed the life of pianist Ritchie Powwell (Bud's brother). Brown's best work is most likely with Max Roach and recorded on other labels, however that does not diminish the excellent performances contained on this release. Many of these items are from dates where Clifford performed as a sideman on recordings by other artists such as Lou Donaldson and Horace Silver's Jazz Messengers. Brown's talent on trumpet shines through on all tracks with a fire and lyricism that makes his early death at the age of 23 that much more sad. His own compositions such as Dahoud and Joy Spring are excellent and one listen to his live feature piece on Once and Awhile with the Jazz Messengers will take your breathe away. Overall this would make a great introduction to the work of the great Clifford Brown and spur an interest to explore much more of his work."

Brownie simply was one of the best, and could have been...

douglasnegley | Pittsburgh, Pa. United States | 09/08/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Clifford Brown's most well-known stuff is probably his collaberation material with Max Roach. For me, all of Brownie's stuff is 5 star. To mix my genres, and metaphors - Brownie strikes me kind of like the 'Duane Allman of the trumpet'; meaning simply that everything he played was played with fire, soul, and an urgency that not only seemed to presage his early demise, (both he and Duane died tragically in vehicle accidents in their early 20s and both were on the cusp of becoming the best at their respective instruments), but also served to make his peers take immediate notice. All that said, this "Best Of" CD is nearly flawless, both in the choices of cuts (all 53-54 Blue Note stuff, of necessity), and level of playing by all involved,(Blakey is tremendous, as always, on "Night In Tunisia" - and you can hear strains of "Split Kick" to come). I don't think I have ever liked a "Best Of" CD as much as I like this one. This is THE introduction to Clifford Brown for the uninitiated - and one for the ages."