Rayford Griffin
Neo Classic Jazz
Tribute to Clifford Brown with Roy Hargrove, George Duke, Brian Bromberg, Rick Braun, Micheal “Patches” Stewart, Nicolas Payton, Phillipe Saisse, Everette Harp, Doug Webb, Dan Lutz, Ian Martin, Barone Brown, Hanz Zermuehlen, Kieth Jones, Micheal Hunter, Bobby English, Clifford Brown Jr. and Clifford Brown lll.
There’s a lot to said for coming to the completion of a project, “Reflections of Brownie” especially when it’s a labor of love.
I started this project sometime ago and it’s very, very personal to me….as a result, a funny thing happened in the studio one day. I was in my studio tracking the inimitable Roy Hargrove on the song “Cherokee”. Roy was doing his thing on a take as only he can do when all of a sudden he hit a note and held it with a slight vibrato. I don’t know what he was thinking about when he played that note, but no sooner than he hit it I began to cry…. Yeah, tears streaming down my face. It was as if my Uncle Cliff was riding that note. Like he showed up and put his hand on my shoulder to say “good job nephew.”
Rayford Griffin, percussionist, composer and producer has roots that extend back to the most revolutionary era of jazz – be bop – thanks to his uncle: the great trumpeter/composer Clifford Brown. Indeed, it was being made pridefully aware of his uncle’s music very early in life by his aunt Larue Brown Watson (Clifford’s widow) and studying it that deeply influenced Rayford to become the far reaching musician that he is today.