1 - American jazz double … Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one artist named Ray Brown.
1 - American jazz double bassist
2 - Australian singer/guitarist
1. Raymond Matthews Brown (October 13, 1926–July 2, 2002) was an American jazz double bassist.
Ray Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and had piano lessons from the age of eight. After noticing how many pianists attended his high school, he thought of taking up the trombone, but was unable to afford one. With a vacancy in the high school jazz orchestra, he took up the double bass.
A major early influence on Brown's bass playing was the bassist in the Duke Ellington band, Jimmy Blanton. As a young man Ray Brown became steadily more well known in the Pittsburgh jazz scene, with his first experiences playing in bands with the Jimmy Hinsley Sextet and the Snookum Russel band. After graduating from high school, hearing stories about the burgeoning jazz scene on 52nd Street, in New York City, he bought a one way ticket to New York.
Arriving in New York at the age of twenty, he met up with Hank Jones, with whom he had previously worked, and was introduced to Dizzy Gillespie, who was looking for a bass player. Gillespie hired Brown on the spot and he soon played with such established musicians as Art Tatum and Charlie Parker.
From 1946 to 1951 he played in Gillespie's band. Brown, along with the vibraphonist Milt Jackson, drummer Kenny Clarke, and the pianist John Lewis formed the rhythm section of the Gillespie band, and their work together eventually led to the creation of the Modern Jazz Quartet.
Around this time Brown was also appearing in Jazz at the Philharmonic concerts, organised by Norman Granz. It was at these concerts that he met the jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, whom he married in 1947. Together they adopted a child born to Fitzgerald's half-sister Francis, whom they christened Ray Brown, Jr. Fitzgerald and Brown divorced in 1952.
It was at a Jazz at the Philharmonic concert in 1949 that Brown first worked with the jazz pianist Oscar Peterson, in whose trio Brown would play from 1951 to 1966. After leaving the Trio he became a manager and promoter as well as a performer.
In 1966, he settled in Los Angeles where he was in high demand working for various television show orchestras. He also accompanied some of the leading artists of the day, including Frank Sinatra, Billy Eckstine, Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughan, and Nancy Wilson. He also managed his former musical partners, the Modern Jazz Quartet, as well as a young Quincy Jones, produced some shows for the Hollywood Bowl, wrote jazz double bass instruction books, and developed a jazz cello.
It was whilst in Los Angeles that he composed music for films and television shows. He was awarded his first Grammy for his composition, "Gravy Waltz", a tune which would later be used as the theme song for The Steve Allen Show.
In the 1980s and 1990s he led his own trios and continued to refine his bass playing style. In his later years he recorded and toured extensively with pianist Gene Harris. In the early 1980s, he discovered Diana Krall in a restaurant in Nanaimo, British Columbia.
He continued to perform until his death; he died while taking a nap before a show in Indianapolis.
2. Ray Brown & The Whispers were a highly successful Australian rock band from 1964-67. Led by singer Ray Brown, they ranked alongside The Easybeats, Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs and Normie Rowe as one of the most popular acts of the period. After a few name and personnel changes which led to short lived incarnations, Ray sought to further/widen his career and in late '67 Ray headed overseas and spent two years working in the U.S.A. which included the recording of a solo album Just Ray Brown for Capitol, produced by American composer arranger producer David Axelrod. Despite the name producer and large budget, it flopped, largely due to poor choices of material by the company. According to a contemporary interview from Go-Set, Ray declared that "Capitol spent $30,000 on it, put in a 30 piece orchestra and then wouldn't let me pick my own material."
3. Ray Brown is from Tallahassee, FL and has been writing songs and performing since 2010. His debut album, CANYON, was released in August, 2012. The East Village arts quarterly, BOOG CITY describes his songs as "funny and tragic at the same time" and The New Yorker dubbed him "a solid songwriter".
https://raybrown.bandcamp.com
Bye Bye Blackbird
Ray Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, what hard luck stories they all hand me
Pack up all my cares and woe, here I go, winging low
Bye, bye, blackbird
Where somebody waits for me
Sugar's sweet, so is she
Bye, bye, blackbird
No one here can love or understand me
Oh, what hard luck stories they all hand me
Make my bed and light the light, I'll arrive late tonight
Blackbird, bye, bye
Bye, bye, blackbird
Where somebody waits for me
Sugar's sweet, so is she
Bye, bye, blackbird
No one here can love or understand me
Oh what hard luck stories they all hand me
Make my bed and light the light, I'll arrive late tonight
Blackbird, bye, bye
The lyrics to "Bye Bye Blackbird" are about a person who feels lost and unloved in their current surroundings. The singer notes that no one around them can seem to understand or empathize with their struggles, and instead they are constantly met with stories of hardship. This has evidently become too much for the singer to bear, so they decide to leave all their cares and worries behind and set out on a new journey, symbolized by the image of a bird taking flight. The song ends with the singer hoping for someone to be waiting for them at the end of their journey, to offer them the love and understanding they crave.
There is a strong sense of longing and desperation in the singer's words, as they seem to be searching for a way to escape a situation that has become unbearable. The image of the "blackbird" offers an effective metaphor for this escape, as it evokes both the freedom and the loneliness that often come with new beginnings. Overall, "Bye Bye Blackbird" is a powerful meditation on the human desire for connection and understanding, and the challenges we face when those things are hard to come by.
Line by Line Meaning
No one here can love or understand me
I am feeling alone and unappreciated by those around me, with nobody caring enough to truly know me.
Oh, what hard luck stories they all hand me
The people around me are only capable of giving me negative, pitying stories that focus on my misfortunes and create a bleak outlook.
Pack up all my cares and woe, here I go, winging low
I am leaving all of my worries and burdens behind as I take a melancholic journey downward, filled with heartache and possibly regret.
Bye, bye, blackbird
Goodbye, farewell to the blackbird, a symbol of sadness and mourning, which represents my current state of mind and emotions.
Where somebody waits for me
There is hope that my journey will lead me to a place where I am wanted, welcomed and appreciated, where someone waits expecting me with open arms.
Sugar's sweet, so is she
The person who is waiting for me is not only sweet like sugar but also worth more than any amount of sweetness can ever provide, a true gem of a person who has earned my love.
No one here can love or understand me
Once again, highlighting the isolation and discontent with present surroundings, leading to the decision to leave and seek something better.
Make my bed and light the light, I'll arrive late tonight
Prepare a cozy bed for me, switch on the light, and wait patiently as I will arrive late tonight, as a metaphorical way of asking for a warm welcome and a place to call home in the arms of that special someone.
Blackbird, bye, bye
After repeating the chorus, finalizing the separation symbolized by the blackbird, and the expectation of better things to come represented by the waiting person, it's time to say goodbye and start anew.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., BMG Rights Management
Written by: Mort Dixon, Ray Henderson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@JackGarside
I recently went through and made corrections to any mistakes in this transcription. If you are interested in purchasing the score with updated chord symbols and corrected notes please check the link in the description! Thanks
@mossmonaco9061
Beautiful . . . everything!
@timcoakley5498
Absolutely wonderful
@teaiianomusic
Phenomenal!
@flamenfloralis
What an excellent transcription !!! Thanks for sharing such a gift!
@analogman9697
Thanks! I'm trying to break away from tab and this is a great one.
@jdanielcramer
Love these ❤
@steventailornotenmusicshee6383
thank you for sharing! I enjoyed playing it!
@raulrichards412
Great Tune.♪♫♫ I Love It.♦ The Transcription is Magnificent.!!! Thanks.
@dirkdehaes6206
Many thanks for sharing that pdf. Great job!!!