I Remember Clifford (song)
"I Remember Clifford" is an instrumental jazz threnody written by jazz tenor saxophonist Benny Golson in memory of Clifford Brown, the influential and highly regarded jazz trumpeter who died in an auto accident at the age of 25. Brown and Golson had done a stint in Lionel Hampton's band together. The original recording was by Donald Byrd in January 1957.[1]
The composition became an instant standard, as musicians paid tribute to Brown by recording their personal reading of it. Golson later said, "[it] took me several weeks, but I'd never written a composition like it before. I wanted to create a melody that the public would remember, and associate it with [him]."
Arturo Sandoval recorded the album I Remember Clifford as a tribute to Brown, who was a great influence on Sandoval; it features Golson's tune.
Notable recordings
- Donald Byrd - Jazz Lab (Columbia, 1957)[2]
- George Cables – Circle (Contemporary, 1979)
- Ray Charles – My Kind of Jazz (1970)
- Kenny Dorham – This Is the Moment! (Riverside, 1958)
- Don Ellis – Shock Treatment (2002)
- Art Farmer and Benny Golson, Meet the Jazztet (Argo, 1960)[2]
- Stan Getz and Kenny Barron – People Time (1991)
- Dizzy Gillespie – Dizzy Gillespie at Newport (Verve, 1957)[2]
- Roy Hargrove – The Tokyo Sessions (1991)
- Woody Herman – Woody Live East and West (CBS, 1965)
- Milt Jackson – Bags' Opus (United Artists, 1958)
- Keith Jarrett – Still Live (ECM, 1986)[2]
- Quincy Jones – The Birth of a Band (1959)[2]
- The Manhattan Transfer – Vocalese (1985)
- Hugh Masekela – Almost Like Being in Jazz (Chissa, 2005)
- Carmen McRae – Carmen for Cool Ones (1958)[3]
- Helen Merrill – Brownie: Homage to Clifford Brown (1995)[4]
- Modern Jazz Quartet – European Concert (Atlantic, 1960)
- Lee Morgan – Lee Morgan Vol. 3 (Blue Note, 1957)[2]
- Oscar Peterson – Something Warm (Verve, 1962)
- Bud Powell with Don Byas – A Tribute to Cannonball (Columbia, 1961 [1979])
- Buddy Rich – Blues Caravan (Verve, 1961)
- Sonny Rollins with Thad Jones – Now's the Time (RCA Victor, 1964)[2]
- Arturo Sandoval – I Remember Clifford (GRP, 1992)[2]
- Sarah Vaughan – Live in Prague 1978 (DVD)[5]
- Dinah Washington – recorded October 4, 1957, The Queen[6][2]
- Nancy Wilson with George Shearing – The Swingin's Mutual! (1961)
- Bill Wurtz – Jazz Green Giant (2014)[7]
References
- ↑ Blumenthal, Bob (2004) In The Complete Argo/Mercury Art Farmer/Benny Golson/Jazztet Sessions [CD liner notes]. p. 3. Mosaic.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Gioia, Ted (2012). The Jazz Standards: A Guide to the Repertoire. New York City: Oxford University Press. pp. 179–180. ISBN 978-0-19-993739-4.
- ↑ Carmen McRae – Carmen for Cool Ones at AllMusic. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
- ↑ Helen Merrill – Brownie: Homage to Clifford Brown at AllMusic. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
- ↑ Sarah Vaughan – Live in Prague 1978 at AllMusic. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
- ↑ Mercury Records Discography: 1957 – jazzdisco.org. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
- ↑ "billwurtz". www.billwurtz.com. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
External links
- Brownie Quotes – Benny Golson Golson's description of hearing of Brown's death
- Article at jazzstandards.com