Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown

• Artist: Sarah Vaughan and Clifford Brown
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1954 12 16+1954 12 18
• Total Time: 50:04
• Genre: Vocal Music

Review

This 1954 studio date, a self-titled album recorded for Emarcy, was later reissued as Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown to denote the involvement of one of the top trumpeters of the day. Vaughan sings nine intimate standards with a band including Brown on trumpet, Herbie Mann on flute, and Paul Quinichette on tenor, each of which have plenty of space for solos (most of the songs are close to the five-minute mark). Vaughan is arguably in the best voice of her career here, pausing and lingering over notes on the standards "April in Paris," "Jim," and "Lullaby of Birdland." As touching as Vaughan is, however, Brown almost equals her with his solos on "Lullaby of Birdland," "Jim," and "September Song," displaying his incredible bop virtuosity in a restrained setting without sacrificing either the simple feeling of his notes or the extraordinary flair of his choices. Quinichette's solos are magnificent as well, his feathery tone nearly a perfect match for Vaughan's voice. Ironically though, neither Brown nor Quinichette or Mann appear on the album's highlight, "Embraceable You," which Vaughan performs with close accompaniment from the rhythm section: Jimmy Jones on piano, Joe Benjamin on bass, and Roy Haynes on drums. Vaughan rounds the notes with a smile and even when she's steeping to reach a few low notes, she never loses the tremendous feeling conveyed by her voice. In whichever incarnation it's reissued, Sarah Vaughan With Clifford Brown is one of the most important jazz-meets-vocal sessions ever recorded. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Lullaby of Birdland (Lyrics)	George Shearing, George David Weiss	Sarah Vaughan	(4:00)
April in Paris	Vernon Duke, E.Y. "Yip" Harburg	Sarah Vaughan	(6:21)
He's My Guy	Gene DePaul, Don Raye	Sarah Vaughan	(4:13)
Jim	Nelson Shawn, Caesar Petrillo, Edward Ross	Sarah Vaughan	(5:54)
You're Not the Kind	Irving Mills, Will Hudson	Sarah Vaughan	(4:44)
Embraceable You	George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin	Sarah Vaughan	(4:51)
I'm Glad There Is You	Jimmy Dorsey, Paul Mertz	Sarah Vaughan	(5:11)
September Song (Lyrics)	Kurt Weill, Maxwell Anderson	Sarah Vaughan	(5:46)
It's Crazy	Richard Rodgers, Dorothy Fields	Sarah Vaughan	(5:06)
Lullaby of Birdland [Partial Alternative Take]	George Shearing, George David Weiss	Sarah Vaughan	(3:58)

Credits

Clifford Brown (Trumpet), Clifford Brown (Main Performer), Clifford Brown (Performer), Herbie Mann (Flute), Joe Benjamin (Bass), Ernie Wilkins (Arranger), Ernie Wilkins (Conductor), Roy Haynes (Drums), Roy Haynes (Drums (Snare)), Jimmy Jones (Piano), Peter Keepnews (Notes Editing), Paul Quinichette (Sax (Tenor)), Sarah Vaughan (Vocals), Sarah Vaughan (Main Performer), Sarah Vaughan (Performer), Richard Seidel (CD Preparation), Bob Shad (Producer), Ellen Fitton (Reissue Mastering), Kiyoshi "Boxman" Koyama (Research), William Claxton (Photography), Herman Leonard (Reissue Photography), Michael Bourne (Liner Notes), Kiyoshi Tokiwa (Remixing), Kiyoshi Tokiwa (Research), Paul Ramey (CD Preparation), Hollis King (Reissue Art Director), Michael Ullman (Liner Notes), Bryan Koniarz (Reissue Producer), Sherniece Smith (Art Coordinator), Ken Druker (Executive Producer), Robert Appleton (Reissue Design), Mark Smith (Reissue Production Assistance)