The elegant Palm Court on Decatur Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans is a mecca for traditional jazz aficionados. They flock there to see artists whose musical history spans the entire age of jazz. There are hardly any of those left anymore. Pud Brown was one of the last, and he passed away in 1996. No one who saw him can forget the kindly, fun-loving man with the mane of white hair. Off-stage he would talk with you about repairing instruments and the goats he used to raise. On-stage the man who had been a child prodigy was a virtuoso on the clarinet. Seventy years of experience served him and his listeners well. This CD features Pud Brown at his best, with some of his musical colleagues from the Palm Court, including the late, great
Danny Barker. The CD begins with a tune Brown made famous in the '40s, "The Johnson Rag Blues." He plays the blues, with
Barker on vocals, on "Some of These Days." Most of the tunes really swing with the joy that characterizes the city of New Orleans. "Second Line" captures the charm of that exuberant Crescent City custom of parading and dancing around the room, following the leader with the umbrella. "Sweet Georgia Brown" and "Down in Honky Tonk Town" leave the listener smiling. That is how Pud Brown left everyone. ~ Rose of Sharon Witmer