Who Is Raymond Matthews Brown

Ray Brown, or Raymond Matthews Brown, has been widely acclaimed as jazz’s greatest bassist. Ray Brown was born in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, on October 13, 1926. Originally, Brown began as a piano player; he began taking piano lessons at the age of eight. Although he grew up playing piano, in high school, he wanted to play the trombone, but could not afford to buy an instrument. He originally signed up to play the piano in high school, but didn’t realize there were 26 other pianists ahead of him. Because there were so many piano players, they rotated practices, so most days, he sat through rehearsal with nothing to do. When he noticed there were only 2 bass players but 3 instruments, he asked for permission to play the bass, and a legacy was
born. He was fascinated by Duke Ellington’s tunes playing in the jukeboxes, and learned the bass lines of legend Jimmy Blanton. Brown would practice those lines every day and began playing in jazz clubs around Pittsburgh. Brown graduated from high school in 1944, and along the way, he was offered big gigs by bandleaders with whom he had played in local engagements. Once he graduated, he set off on an eight-month tour with Jimmy Hinsley and his band, the Jimmy Hinsley Sextet, but his heart was captivated by stories of the jazz scene in New York.
As Brown’s music skill and talent increased, he had many influences that drove him to keep going. Some of these influences include Jimmy Blanton, the bassist in Duke Ellington’s band, Leroy Stewart and Oscar Pettiford. After he finished his gig with the Jimmy Hinsley Sextet, Brown went on to join the band of Snookum Russell. A fellow band member in Russell’s band told Brown about the opportunities and wonderful life he could live in New York City. Brown followed his suggestion and bought a one-way ticket to New York City in 1944.
During his first night in New York City, Brown ran into Hank Jones, a friend of his, at a jazz club on 52nd Street. This street was known as “Swing Street,” and it was lined up with many jazz clubs. Hank Jones introduced Brown to Dizzy Gillespie. That night, Gillespie hired Brown as a bass player for his band without requiring an audition from Brown. Some of Brown’s new band members included Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, and Max Roach. Through Brown’s work with this band, he was able to quickly learn the bebop style, a style the band was very familiar with. Brown became “a mentor for every musician regardless of their instrument…He just played on a different level, he was a bebopper, but he understood less was more” (Post-Gazette), stated Marty Ashby, executive producer of the Guild Jazz program.
Later, in 1945, Brown appeared at Billy Berg’s nightclub in Hollywood, California, with Gillespie.
The next year, in the winter, Brown returned to New York City. There, he opened at Clark Monroe’s Spotlite on 52nd Street. He played with a band that included, Milt Jackson, Al Haig, Stan Levey, and Sonny Stitt and Ray himself. This group, or sextet, later recorded for the Musicraft label. This recording session included “One Bass Hit,” a song featuring Ray Brown, on the bass. In 1947, Esquire Magazine polled jazz critics to choose an “All American” jazz band. Miles Davis, Sonny Stitts, Milt Jackson, Sarah Vaughn, Dodo Marmarosa and Ray Brown were the musicians chosen who promised to dominate the jazz scene for the next 30
years.
Brown played with Gillespie’s band from 1946-1951.
The rhythm section of Gillespie’s band included vibraphonist Milt Jackson, pianist John Lewis, drummer Kenny Clarke, and Brown himself. However, eventually this rhythm section formed the Modern Jazz Quartet. Through the work with Gillespie’s band, Brown was introduced to and became friends with jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald. They were introduced when she joined the Gillespie’s band as a special attraction for a tour they were taking in the southern United States in 1947. They were married on December 10, 1947, in Ohio. After they were married, they moved into a residence on Dittmars Boulevard in Queens, New York. Soon after, they adopted Fitzgerald’s half-sister, Frances’, child, who was christened Ray Brown, Jr. Because Brown wanted to pursue his career with Peterson, Fitzgerald and Brown were not able to spend much time together, eventually they decided to end their marriage and file for divorce, which was finalized August 28, 1953. Fitzgerald maintained custody of Ray Brown, Jr., and the two remained friends and continued performing together. Brown remarried in 1954, Cecilia Brown remained his wife until his death in
2002.
In 1947, Brown left Gillespie’s band and performed with Fitzgerald in Norman Granz’s Jazz at the Philharmonic. He continued 18 years of performing with the Granz Jazz group. It was there, in 1949, that Brown was first introduced to and worked with the jazz pianist, Oscar Peterson. Beginning in 1950, Ray Brown and Oscar Peterson performed as a duo, continuing over the next several years. Also in 1950, Brown recorded with Charlie Parker and appeared with the Milt Jackson Quartet. The Quartet’s pianist was, once again, John Lewis. At another session with Charlie Parker in 1951, Brown was in the company of trumpet player, Red Rodney, pianist, John Lewis and drummer, Kenny Clarke. Later the same year, Brown again appeared with the Milt Jackson Quartet and attended a Charlie Parker big band recording session in Hollywood.
From 1952 to 1966, the duo of Ray Brown and Oscar Peterson formed the Oscar Peterson Trio, accompanied by various guitarists, who included Irving Ashby, Barney Kessel and Herb Ellis. In 1958, Peterson replaced Ellis with drummer, Gene Gammage, who only stayed a few months, before recruiting drummer, Edmund Thigpen. By the early 1960s, the pressure of the group’s performance schedule became far too demanding for Brown, who, after 15 years of performing, left the trio, settling in Hollywood in 1966.
Whilst in Hollywood, Ray Brown worked in areas of management, promotion and record production. In 1974, he and saxophonist, Bud Shank, guitarist, Luarindo Almeida and drummer Shelly Manne founded the LA Four. He was also in high demand for various television show orchestras, including the Merv Griffin Show, on which he appeared 4 days a week. He also accompanied some of the leading artists of the day, including Nancy Wilson, Billy Eckstine, Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughn and Frank Sinatra. In addition, he recorded with pianist Cedar Walton and drummer Elvin Jones. He also managed his former playing partners, the Modern Jazz Quartet, composed music for films and TV Shows, wrote instructional books for jazz bassists and developed a jazz cello, a hybrid instrument he had built specifically for him which combined features of the cello and the bass. This attracted a lot of interest and led to the creation of the piccolo bass for Ron Carter. In the early 1970s, Brown realized a lifelong dream by working with Duke Ellington prior to the death of the legendary bandleader. They recorded a tribute album to Brown’s childhood idol, This One’s for Blanton.
In 1984, Ray Brown formed a trio with Gene Harris and Jeff Hamilton, who recorded together for 9 years. In his later career, he appeared with many artists, including Milt Jackson, JJ Johnson, Tom Ranier, John Collins, Roy McCurdy, Steely Dan, John Guerin, Gene Harris, Diana Krall, John Clayton, Bobby Enriquez and Al Foster. From 1990-1993, Brown reunited with Oscar Peterson and Herb Ellis in the Oscar Peterson Trio. During this time, the trio recorded four Grammy award-winning albums. The group dissolved when Peterson suffered a severe stroke in 1993.
Brown dedicated his later years to a new generation of musicians by passing on his knowledge and experience. He received the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award for his work with education and mentoring for upcoming musicians. Brown’s almost Zen-like playing approach produced an aching, throbbing music that quieted even the most rowdy crowd. On July 2, 2002, Brown was in Indianapolis, Indiana for a performance at the Jazz Kitchen. He played golf with friends, then went back to his hotel room to nap. When he failed to show up at the gig later that evening, his body was found in his hotel room, he had died peacefully in his sleep. He was 75.
His tone and musical approach are fundamental to jazz bass. He was able to weave a walking bass line, creating a counter melody and groove with a funky, blues approach. He was the driving rhythm of any group with which he performed, dictating tempo and groove, picking notes to shape the feel and tone of the song. His unique dynamic, innate swing, flawless style and sophisticated rhythm remain the standard for jazz bassists still today. He has inspired countless musicians across the globe and is still consistently picked as a top bassist in jazz by both critics and readers polls. He was “a pioneer who lived long enough to become an elder statesman” (Obituary).