I first recorded Tyrone Brown (Philadelphia, 1940) in August ’96 with Odean Pope’s Trio (CIMP 124) and then shortly after (11/96) with Bobby Zankel’s Quintet (CIMP 131) and I have been singing his praises ever since. Here is a gentleman (in every sense of the word) whose playing and person are matched in their stylish delivery and lyric personality. Here is a bassist who can take a solo that is a melody in itself. Since those sessions, I have suggested to many singers that they try to hook up with him, for his is a voice in perfect match for another voice.

One of those voices is Rosella Washington (Charlotte, NC), but I had nothing to do with bringing them together. In the late summer of ‘99 Tyrone sent me a session with Rosella and thought perhaps Cadence Jazz Records might be interested in issuing it. I listened and melted with the voice; totally enveloped by it. In spite of what I considered technical problems with overproduction, I fell in love with the music and subsequently we cleaned it up as best as we could and issued it on Cadence Jazz Records #1116. With the connection between Tyrone and Rosella already established (actually established by the mid ‘80s), it was a natural to get them to record together. The duo date was set. At the last minute, Bill Meek (Springfield, IL, 1946) (composer, pianist, arranger) came along to lend support, assist in arrangements and, on some tracks, add some percussion touches.

There are many singers who would not, or could not, record in our “no fix it in the mix” process. It takes an assuredness and skill and the need for control and precision. Every hesitation or miss magnifies and distracts. This juxtaposition of precision and improvisation could be compared to waltzing on thin ice and produces its own particular tension and, when successful, its own particular release and seamless inspiration: flying without the net.

Tyrone and Rosella actually arrived a bit too prepared: they had material down and played the tunes flawlessly. But familiarity can make everything so right it’s wrong. It took awhile before the sense of discovery found its necessary place.

Once things loosened up, the natural elements conspired with their own symphony. On a number of tracks, listeners may hear the accompaniment of our spring birds, as well as rain. In fact, on You’d Be So Nice, a sudden rainfall becomes very audible mid-take: real events and real music, perfectly natural and, when listening with headphones, a rather surrealistic transportation. Lush Life followed a discussion of its meaning and its connection to Billy Strayhorn as an artist and individual. During the take, the rain let loose, as did the thunder. It is a particularly notable reading of Stray’s masterpiece. Make what you want of it, this is evocative music.

So here, without baffles, bluffs or anything bogus, are the talents of Rosella Washington and Tyrone Brown. What’s missing is the familiar sparring and good cheer that was very present over the 2 days of recording. Throughout the session, I kept thinking of other directions and repertoire, not out of dissatisfaction but because this talent is such that it suggests so many other possibilities. This is just one recording, a good place to start – not to end.

Robert D. Rusch – 5/10/00