Recent Articles



































Ray Brown



         


Raymond Matthews (Ray) Brown (October 13, 1926 - July 2, 2002) was an American jazz bassist.

Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the age of 8 he began to play piano. When he entered the High School he decided to become a bassist, because there was a vacancy in the school jazz orchestra. Besides he thought practicing bass must be much easier than piano.

His first bands where the Jimmy Hinsley Sextett and the band around Snookum Russel. Giving debuts in several American jazz-clubs his name soon was known in the New York scene. Going there at 20 he met all the stars like Dizzy Gillespie, Art Tatum and Charlie Parker.

After playing from 1946 to 1951 with Dizzy Gillespie, Jazz at the Philharmonic, Milt Jackson, and Ella Fitzgerald (who was then his wife), Brown played with the Oscar Peterson trio for fifteen years. After leaving the Trio he became a manager and promoter as well as a performer. Among the artists he managed were the Modern Jazz Quartet and Quincy Jones.

In the late Sixties he went to L.A. where he wrote several themes and melodies which became standards in films and TV shows. The Gravy Waltz was rewarded with his 1st Grammy. Other Grammys and Poll Awards came along.

Since the Eighties he always tries to refine the style in his own trio. In his later years he recorded and toured extensively with pianist Gene Harris. In 1990 he discovered Diana Krall in a restaurant in Nanaimo.

He continued performing until his death; he died while taking a nap before a show in Indianapolis.

[Top]

Discography


[Top]

Discography (compilations)








  View Live Article   This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License