RAY BROWN TRIO — Some of My Best Friends Are ... The Trumpet Players (2000) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Ray Brown did it again with the fourth installment in his Some of My Best Friends Are... series, spotlighting some of the hottest trumpet players around and producing one of the finest trumpet-fronted small group recordings to come down the jazz pike in a while. Featuring a six-pack of hornmen ranging from octogenarian Clark Terry to youngsters Roy Hargrove and Nicholas Payton, this CD alternately cooks and simmers, with the ballads especially standing out in their spaciousness and beauty. The blend of Brown's bass and Jon Faddis' trumpet on a slowed-down "Bag's Groove" is particularly appealing in its sparseness. The intro and outro duets between Brown's bass and James Morrison's dry trumpet tone on "I Thought About You" are also entrancing in their openness. Terrence Blanchard lays out a smoky lead line over Geoff Keezer's bluesy late-night piano on Benny Goodman's old sign-off theme, "Goodbye," bringing a new poignancy to the tune. On the most noteworthy upbeat number, Payton really smokes on Joe Henderson's composition, "The Kicker," though the track mysteriously fades out too early. Brown himself is fantastic throughout this disc, and he and his trio mates Keezer and drummer Karriem Riggins anchor the proceedings masterfully. Jim Newsom   Tracklist & Credits :

RAY BROWN TRIO — Some of My Best Friends Are ... Guitarists (2002) APE (image+.cue), lossless

The fifth in Ray Brown's series of recordings pairing his working trio with several different musicians from the same family of instruments (although one volume was exclusively singers) features a half-dozen guitarists, ranging from fellow Oscar Peterson alumni Herb Ellis (who worked with Brown in the pianist's most famous trio) and Ulf Wakenius to veteran Kenny Burrell, as well as seasoned players like John Pizzarelli and Bruce Forman and the rising star Russell Malone. Each song sounds as if the group could be a working quartet, due to the great interaction between the trio and each guest. Pizzarelli shines in a bluesy, strutting take of Duke Ellington's "Just Squeeze Me" (erroneously labeled as Fats Waller's "Squeeze Me") which has a nice series of exchanges between the guitarist and the leader. Ellis brings back memories of the Oscar Peterson Trio with a heated performance of "I Want to Be Happy" during which pianist Geoff Keezer is up to the task of carrying on where Ellis left off. Wakenius is the guest on a particularly moody take of "My Funny Valentine." Burrell, Forman, and Malone also fare nicely on each of their pair of tracks, so it's very easy to recommend this very enjoyable disc. Ken Dryden   Tracklist & Credits :

RAY BROWN TRIO — Live at Starbucks (2000) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Widely loved and hated, the Starbucks coffee chain has been playing host to some very good jazz groups. The first live recording from a Starbucks store came from bass legend Ray Brown and his trio, featuring Geoff Keezer on piano and Karriem Riggins on drums. The trio dealt in what used to be called the big beat -- a deep-pocketed swing that rhythm sections of old would serve up as a matter of course. Riggins's lithe trap work and Brown's bass -- beautifully recorded, with reverberating lows that shake the floor -- provide a rock-solid foundation for the chopsy yet impeccably soulful piano inventions of Keezer, who remains one of the instrument's most thrilling technicians. Particularly effective is the mid-set Ellington trilogy, beginning with the rollicking "Mainstem" and ending with a furious "Caravan," with a poetic, swinging bass feature on "Love You Madly" sandwiched in between. (Check out Keezer's "My Favorite Things" reference at the end of "Caravan.") Other highlights include Tadd Dameron's "Our Delight," a subtle "I Should Care," and the bluesiest "When I Fall in Love" you're likely to hear. David R. Adler
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RAY BROWN — Walk On : The Final Ray Brown Trio Recording (2003) 2CD | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

What a curious, if delightful, package Walk On is. Comprised of two CDs -- the first is the final Ray Brown trio date from January 2000 with Geoffrey Keezer and Karriem Riggins, and the second is two separate live shows from 1994 and 1996 respectively -- the players range from Keezer to Monty Alexander and Bennie Green, bassists Josh Clayton and Christian McBride, and drummers Lewis Nash and Gregory Hutchinson. Disc one is pure Brown majesty as he and the band literally walk, very sprightly, through a series of classics such as "You Are My Sunshine," "Stella by Starlight," Wes Montgomery's "Fried Pies," and "Sunday." But more importantly, they showcase the delicate intricacy of Brown's own compositions on the three-part "Ray Brown Suite," the illustriously lush "Hello Girls" -- with a stunning interplay dialogue between Keezer and Brown -- and the funky "Lined With a Groove" that reveals the Horace Silver soul touch in its melodic line. Disc two is from gigs that showcase the different sides of Brown as a leader: the driven, intense improviser who found a groove and extrapolated upon it until it turned into something else, with Hutchinson and Green on "F.S.R." and "Stardust"; the loping strolling bassist who can drive a band with his easy, slippery phrasing, with Alexander and Nash on "Woogie Boogie"; and the dialogue artist concerned with dynamics and the intricacy of a melody's separate harmonic elements, with McBride, Keezer, and Clayton on "Down by the Riverside." In each case, Brown is the consummate listener, the very archetype of economic musical wisdom and a supreme lyricist in his phrasing. One of the most revealing things about this set is how Brown's true worth as a composer, bandleader, and improviser is not yet known and probably won't be for decades to come. But make no mistake; it will be. This may not be the finest of Brown's moments on record, but the recordings are fine, shining examples of his artistry, and they are, alas, the final examples.
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