Tribute to Ray Brown

For half a century, Ray Brown, who died in 2002, was arguably jazz's premier bass player, leading his own bands, adapting to any contingency as a go-to sideman on legions of sessions, crafting the pace with unerring aplomb, and generally setting the standard for everyone else. He had notable stints with Dizzy Gillespie, Milt Jackson, and Ella Fitzgerald, as well as spending 15 years with Oscar Peterson's band. A wonderful trio in their own right, pianist Benny Green, drummer Greg Hutchinson, and bassist Christian McBride perform as the Ray Brown Tribute Band. All three played with Brown, Green and Hutchinson as two-thirds of his trio for a time. McBride is Brown's logical successor as jazz's most versatile and prominent bassist. Brown was a guest on McBride's first album, and later picked McBride to join him and Basie alumnus John Clayton on the triple bass project Super Bass. Equally skilled on acoustic and electric bass, McBride now ranges from straight-ahead jazz to pop and hip-hop.
Mondays, Tuesdays, Sundays, 7 & 9:30 p.m. Starts: April 20. Continues through April 22, 2008