Feature: Alan Brown Trio - About His Time
Author: Wil Sargison
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L-R Dixon Nacey, Alan Brown and Josh Sorenson |
Auckland keyboard maestro Alan Brown will likely be a familiar name to any involved in the New Zealand jazz and funk scenes over the last 15 or so years. His work with the now defunct Blue Train jazz group saw him performing at numerous festivals around the country, the band top earning various honours including 1996 NZ Jazz Album of The Year - an achievement which Alan rates among the high points of his career.
When not busy teaching contemporary music performance at MAINZ in Auckland or performing with Chris Melville's Grand Central Band, Alan is presently directing the bulk of his attention towards the Alan Brown Trio and promotion of their new album 'About This Time'. The Hammond organ-based jazz/funk unit also features the talents of Dixon Nacey on guitar and drummer Josh Sorenson.
When not busy teaching contemporary music performance at MAINZ in Auckland or performing with Chris Melville's Grand Central Band, Alan is presently directing the bulk of his attention towards the Alan Brown Trio and promotion of their new album 'About This Time'. The Hammond organ-based jazz/funk unit also features the talents of Dixon Nacey on guitar and drummer Josh Sorenson.
Alan started out on piano but always liked the organ sound and eventually decided to try his hand at the electronic instrument some people refer to as the first synthesiser.
"The influence came from a long way back. I was always aware of the organ sound, even in the rock days. Gimme Some Lovin' by Steve Winwood, Jon Lord from Deep Purple, Keith Emerson and some other guys made me take notice. Then someone gave me a tape of Jimmy Smith and that was a turning point. I really loved his playing style and in the mid-'90s I made a conscious decision to work hard at developing my organ skills."
Organ trios are unique because all the bass work is done either by the organist's left hand or left foot on the bass pedals, while the right hand is busy soloing or comping. I asked Alan about the difficulties of leading an organ trio.
"The transition from piano to organ bass-pedals is still a challenge. My pedal work has been a bit slow on the uptake but I'm getting there. It's one of those things where you've got to get to a stage where it's second nature. The moment you start thinking about it too much, the right hand goes out the window."
The band is influenced by all manner of artists including Stevie Wonder, jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco, pop-rock legend Prince and USA-based organ trio Medeski, Martin & Wood. 'About That Time' was recorded in July 2007 at MAINZ with Alan on production duties, and engineering by Roy Martyn. Ode Records are handling distribution.
The album is a fine addition to the jazz organ legacy which stretches back to the 1920s. Harlem stride pianist Fats Waller was the first to record jazz on the church organ. Although this sound was unique, the enormous instrument was not terribly well-suited to jazz music. In the 1930s the Hammond organ company started manufacturing a wide range of smaller electronic organs for the home as well as the church but it was not until the 1950s with the arrival of the Hammond B3 and Jimmy Smith that the jazz organ sound as we know it today came into being.
All three members sound perfectly at home in the jazz-funk style and lay down a rock-solid groove. It's this 'feel' that makes it obvious they've been playing together a fair while. Alan has played with Josh consistently since about 2003 when the latter joined the Grand Central Band. He and Dixon have played together over many years in various lineups. Alan's basslines are perfectly in synch with Josh's funky drumming and with such a grooving foundation to work upon, guitarist Dixon has all the time and space in the world to play creatively. He seems to relish every note.
Alan says working with them in a trio format is a breeze.
"Putting this trio together it was a natural choice to select these two players because not only are they easy and fun to work with, they're just monster players as well".
Their improvisational abilities are apparent on each track of 'About This Time' but for me it's their ensemble playing that impresses most. They really are that tight. As well as the funk influence, the trio are also experimenting with reggae music. Dixon's guitar work at times reminds me of Jamaican legend Ernest Ranglin, at other times a John Scofield attitude is prevalent. A familiar yet international sound, fitting with the Alan Brown Trio's aspirations of international festival performances in the near future.
"I'm quite partial to the reggae thing," says Alan, "so we're considering leaning more towards that for our next album. Maybe a live reggae/dub kind of thing with more emphasis on synth sounds."
