Alex, I promised you some comments re "Best Coast Jazz". As I said before, I don't think I have ever heard anything by Clifford Brown that I didn't like. I have and love his recordings with Max Roach and "C B With Strings" has always been one of my very favorite ballads records. It is remarkable that eventhough he tragically died at the age pf 25(!) he was able to achieve such a high level of musicianship and be so influential. "Best Coast Jazz" is a terrific record, clearly in a bebop bag and has the stamp of Charlie Parker's vocabulary all over it; particularly (no surprise) in the case of the two alto players, but with a somewhat lighter rhythmic touch and softer instrumental tones typical of West Coast players. I think the tenor player Walter Benton sounds less committed to the bebop idiom and his connection to the older "swing" style can be heard in his tone, inflections and less complete command of the more complex bebop harmonies. Clifford is brilliant as always. Few players can "tell a story" the way that Clifford could:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PLi8BquRmKA_n4umKPYQFIWlVzineIM9b2&v=uAl6Sro_OtIYour clip was a bit of a "blast from the past" for me since one of the alto players, Herb Geller, was the featured alto player on the very first jazz record I bought at the age 13, Maynard Ferguson's "McArthur Park"; great alto player. The other alto player, Joe Maini, definitely belongs on your list of "forgotten ones". Fantastic West Coast player who was greatly admired during his years in the LA scene, but sadly led a tragic life. Interesting, if sad, story:
http://www.jazzwax.com/2010/06/the-truth-about-joe-mainis-death.htmlThanks for the Clifford Clip.
