May 2008

Ted Brown
Shades of Brown
SteepleChase

By Forrest Dylan Bryant

Ted Brown, an accomplished but rarely recorded octogenarian saxophonist, has a lightly swinging sound inspired largely by Lester Young. Here, Brown plays a dozen standards in a trio setting so intimate that the “clop” of his sax pads becomes a key part of the recording. This closeness can be a liability, making a few tunes sound creaky, but on most tracks Brown seems to become one with the familiar melodies, not only breathing life into them, but literally breathing them as the air.