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Musicians: Marion Brown as, Michael Möhring g,berimbau,balafon,perc, Peter Krug b, Bernd Nawothnig dr, Wolfgang Kropp congas,perc
Recording date: 1999
Recording place: O-Tone Recording Studios, Göttingen
He is undoubtedly a legend. MARION BROWN, born in Atlanta/Georgia, was already counted among the prominent musicians of the ‘New Wave of Jazz’ movement in the sixties and recorded important albums under his own name for IMPULSE, ESP and ECM. As a sideman, he participated in epoch-making releases such as Ascension by John Coltrane and Fire Music by Archie Shepp. These activities helped him to become an important saxophonist with an unmistakable voice. Projects and tours followed with Sun Ra, Paul Bley, Pharoah Sanders, Leo Smith, Gunter Hampel and Mal Waldron, among others. In 1990, Brown met the German-based ensemble JAZZ CUSSION for the first time. It was a fruitful encounter, which spawned the album Native Land in 1992 and a tour through Germany.
After a break of several years without a release, the American alto saxophonist set off on an – for him – unusual path with the ensemble JAZZ CUSSION. ECHOES OF BLUE is Brown’s first (although it is hard to believe) purely standard album ranging between ballads and Latin classics. It’s a professionally produced work, which lets his lyrical vein develop to its fullest. Reminisces of his mentors Duke Ellington (Prelude to a Kiss) und John Coltrane (Naima) are of course unavoidable. The musicians sketch light, airy outlines with virtuoso playing on guitar, double-bass, drums and percussion, which make the artistic encounter between JAZZ CUSSION and MARION BROWN into a thoroughly delightful experience. Especially the exciting dialog between Brown’s saxophone and Michael Möhring’s guitar gives the pieces a deeper, poetic dimension. This creates the decisive element shaping this album, which makes it clear that they have something to tell each other. Aside from Stella By Starlight – a rousing showcase for JAZZ CUSSION in a guitar-trio format – the American is the focal point of the music in all pieces: a revelation, not only for fans of Marion Brown!
ECHOES OF BLUE is being released worldwide. It was released in Germany and Switzerland on 1 June 2000.
Our favorites: Little Sunflower; Naima; Stella by Starlight; Prelude to a Kiss
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