Maurice Brown: Musical Manifestations of Mood

  

Maurice Brown: Musical Manifestations of Mood

I remember first seeing Maurice Brown play in a live performance video I watched about two years ago. It might have been a charity event or a special Birthday performance, but for some reason there was an absurdly talented group of musicians sharing the stage (I’m talking Robert Glasper, Derrick Hodge, Chris Dave and a handful of others). Brown bore an eerie resemblance to Miles Davis when he stepped onto the stage and blasted off a trumpet solo clad in a long open coat, a wide brimmed hat and dark sunglasses (check out the picture of Davis on the cover of his Autobiography for an idea). Brown’s assertive playing and cool swagger impressed me, though I have to admit that I forgot all about him until I discovered his 2017 album The Mood several months later.

 Full album stream of The Mood
 

Brown’s most recent album The Mood lives up to his consistently impressive discography. Brown is perhaps best known as a trumpet player and composer, but he also leads a busy career as a music producer. After cultivating multiple musical talents, the Brown who first impressed Chicago audiences as a teenager in the 90s is now recognized worldwide as one of the most exciting trumpet players of his generation. Possessing first rate abilities as trumpet player, a forward thinking approach to composition, and the production know-how to execute his creative visions, Brown melds hip hop sensibilities with jazz in a style which progresses and matures with each successive album he releases.

Originally from Harvey, Illinois, Brown grew up in Chicago, where he quickly broke into the city’s professional jazz scene while still in high school. In one interview, Brown claims he didn’t take music very seriously until he was in his first year of highschool, when he had the opportunity to attend a trumpet seminar led by Wynton Marsalis. Marsalis was apparently so impressed by Brown’s playing that he encouraged him to focus on music. Brown also played basketball competitively at the time, but Brown credits his encounter with Marsalis as the moment which inspired him to devote himself fully to music. Brown later moved to New Orleans where he continued to grow musically, absorbing the city’s rich jazz history while also developing his own sound.

The connections between Brown and Miles Davis go beyond the aforementioned (occasional) fashion choices and swagger. An Illinois native like Davis, Brown first garnered wide recognition when he won the National Miles Davis Trumpet Competition in 2001. Fast forward to 2017 and traces of Davis’s tone can still be heard in Brown’s trumpet playing. Brown also claims to have been heavily inspired by Davis’s more melodic approach to soloing. Brown’s musical vision runs parallel to Davis’s too, with an ethos characterized by restless innovation and the search for new styles driving his output thus far. The idea of producing music in a ‘tried and tested’ style doesn’t seem to enter Brown’s mind.

While the fusion of jazz and hip hop goes back to the 90s, Brown has been praised for his unique and ever evolving approach. Brown’s 2017 album The Mood artfully combines the complexities of jazz with the simpler but uniquely potent energy of hip hop. The Mood shifts naturally from ecstatic and sometimes frantic solos to relaxed but intricate, almost romantic melodies. In the context of modern jazz, Brown’s approach to hip hop and jazz fusion can be compared stylistically to some of the music of American jazz pianist Robert Glasper, with both artists faithfully paying tribute to jazz roots while integrating elements of hip hop production developed by producers like J Dilla.

The Mood provides further evidence of Brown’s impressive compositional talents, with tracks like ‘Serendipity’ featuring extremely memorable, but interesting melodies. Derek Douget’s tenor sax on ‘Serendipity’ adds to the vivid palette of tonal color which for me makes this album such a pleasant and rewarding listen (Chelsea Baratz, who plays the majority of the tenor parts on the album, is also outstanding). ‘Capricorn Rising’ likewise begins with a bright, welcoming melody before unfolding into solos which bubble with virtuosity and spiritual optimism. It may not be unrealistic to imagine tracks like ‘Capricorn Rising’ becoming standards for the current generation of jazz musicians.

'Serendipity' off The Mood

'Capricorn Rising' off The Mood

 A diverse mix of styles can be heard on The Mood, with the jazz-hip hop of ‘Intimate Transitions’ preceding the hip hop anthem ‘Stand Up’, which is in turn followed by the jazz/world-music firecracker ‘Moroccan Dancehall’. Multifaceted as it already is stylistically, The Mood also features vocals from Brown and guests on several tracks, referencing everything from personal confidence about one’s own sex appeal (‘The Mood’), to more serious topics like police brutality, political polarization and a desire for social unity (‘Stand Up’ and ‘Destination Hope’).

'The Mood' off The Mood

It’s impossible for me to pick a favourite track off the album; at best I could probably name about four that really stand out. Among these tracks I definitely have to mention ‘Stand Up’, which features vocals from Talib Kweli. This is the most ‘hip hop’ track on the album, though the jazz vibes are still heavy. The entire album is melodically rich and often danceable, but I think ‘Stand Up’ is the most uplifting track on the album. ‘Stand Up’ might have been my go-to song in the last year when I needed a boost of energy or positivity, even in spite of some of the darker subject matter which Kweli mentions. Kweli and Brown seem like a natural jazz musician and emcee combination if ever there was one, both possessing similar intelligent yet sensitive creative visions in their respective disciplines.

'Stand Up' (feat. Talib Kweli) off The Mood

As Brown’s talents have grown, so has his profile among jazz musicians and the wider music world. Always a producer as well as a jazz musician, Brown now finds himself in high demand, making both guest appearances on the trumpet and working behind the scenes producing for other musicians. In exchange for Talib Kweli’s contribution to The Mood, Brown lent his production talents to several songs on Kweli’s own 2017 album Radio Silence. Brown’s other recent collaborations include work on albums with Musiq Soulchild, De la soul and Cee-Lo Green. 

Maurice Brown -- Trumpet / Vocals
Kris Bowers -- Piano / Keyboards
Solomon Dorsey -- Bass
Joe Blaxx -- Drums
Josh Connolly -- Guitar (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10)
Chelsea Baratz -- Tenor Sax & Vocals (tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10)
Derek Douget -- Tenor Sax (tracks 2, 9)
Weedie Braimah -- Percussion (tracks 5, 8)
Saunders Sermons -- Trombone (track 3)
Talib Kweli -- Vocals (track 4)
Chris Turner -- Vocals (track 10)
J. Ivy -- Spoken Word (track 10)


Article by Matthew Douglas