[Dixielandjazz] Ray Brown

[Bryan Livett]

Jazz Bassist Ray Brown Dies at 75
By REUTERS


Filed at 5:46 p.m. ET

INDIANAPOLIS (Reuters) - Famed jazz bassist Ray Brown, whose soulful
dexterity provided the musical backbone for such ``be-bop'' greats as
Charlie Parker and Ella Fitzgerald, to whom he also was married, has died
while on tour, his manager said on Thursday.

Brown, 75, apparently died in his sleep on Tuesday while taking a nap prior
to a scheduled show at the Jazz Kitchen in Indianapolis. He had played a
round of golf earlier in the day and reported not feeling well.

The cause of death was a bowel infarction, or death of a section of the
intestine, likely caused by heart disease, the Marion County Medical
Examiner's office said following an autopsy of the body.

The announcement by club manager Frank Steans of Brown's death brought gasps
and groans from a packed house on Tuesday night, the Indianapolis Star
newspaper reported.

A multiple Grammy Award winner, Brown headlined his own trios in recent
years, traveling around the world.

His most famous duet might have been with singer Ella Fitzgerald, whom he
accompanied and directed before marrying in 1948. The union broke up four
years later, the couple having adopted a son, Ray Brown, Jr., who is also a
jazz musician.

A composer and impresario as well as one of the most sought-after bassists
in jazz, Brown's hit ``Gravy Waltz'' won a Grammy and became the theme song
for TV's Steve Allen show. Recently, he had produced a collaborative album
entitled ``Some of My Best Friends Are ... Guitarists'' with other jazz
notables.

During a career stretching back to the Jimmy Hinsley sextet more than a
half-century ago, Brown accompanied such stars as Frank Sinatra, Tony
Bennett, Charlie Parker, Oscar Peterson, Sarah Vaughan and Milt Jackson.

Born Raymond Matthews Brown in Pittsburgh Oct. 13, 1926, he began playing
piano at age 8 but taught himself the bass, traveling with Jimmy Hinsley's
group and Snookum Russell's band during the big-band era.

At age 20, he won the bassist's job on Dizzy Gillespie's famed be-bop group
featuring Parker on saxophone, Bud Powell on piano and Max Roach on drums.
Brown kept up with the group's frenetic pace, helping to establish the
unpredictable, often atonal style as the leading edge of modern music.

``He is one of the greatest bassists of all time, seen as a reference by
all,'' said Andre Menard, artistic director of the Montreal Jazz Festival,
where Brown performed twice in the past decade, the last time in 2000.

Brown formed his own trio in 1948 with Hank Jones and Charlie Smith, and his
groups became known as incubators for aspiring jazz pianists and soloists.

Long partnerships with the pianist Peterson and the vibist Jackson, with
whom he formed the Modern Jazz Quartet with pianist John Lewis, followed.

An astute businessman, Brown also directed the Monterrey (California) Jazz
Festival for two years.