BLP 4168

Freddie Roach - Brown Sugar

Released - December 1963

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, March 19, 1964
Joe Henderson, tenor sax; Freddie Roach, organ; Eddie Wright, guitar; Clarence Johnston, drums.

1314 tk.4 Next Time You See Me
1315 tk.8 Brown Sugar
1316 tk.19 Have You Ever Had The Blues
1317 tk.22 All Night Long
1318 tk.27 The Midnight Sun Will Never Set
1319 tk.29 The Right Time

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
Brown Sugar	Freddie Roach	19 March 1964
The Right Time	Jerry Herman	19 March 1964
Have You Ever Had the Blues	Harold Logan, Lloyd Price	19 March 1964
Side Two
The Midnight Sun Will Never Set	Dorcas Cochran, Quincy Jones, Henri Salvador	19 March 1964
Next Time You See Me	Earl Forest, William G. Harvey	19 March 1964
All Night Long	Curtis Reginald Lewis	19 March 1964

Liner Notes

IT WAS RAINING as we arrived at the recording studio. A soft warm rain. Not enough to really bother anyone. Just enough to make the earth a darker brown, and polish the streets to a high gloss.

The sounds of the nearby highway mixed with a steady dripping from the roof of the studio on a garbage can lid below. Providing a sort of natural set of drums. I stood in the rain listening. Bop bap du bap du bap bap.

Somewhere a siren added itself to this strange orchestra. Then another, and another. The ghostly trio fading away in diminuendo down the highway. Leaving only the drums. Bap bop du bop du bap bap. I stood listening and thinking about what we had decided to try to do tonite...my thoughts slipped back to that night at the dance ...where

From the bandstand I watched the people dancing. A sea of swaying, bobbing heads. Militarily together, as if tied with rope or chain. Heads thrown back they stared off into the smoke filled ceiling, or at the balcony peopled with those without partners...the table watchers...the wallflowers...

As I watched, some people formed circles, inside which the better dancers were showcased. Urging them on with much hand clapping and shouting, until they, exhausted, fell back, allowing two more to take their place.

The air was alive with sights and sounds. In a corner of the floor I watched a couple hover, out of view almost. Like birds not fully certain of their wings. They made short trips to the dance floor, returning to their "nest' to practice.

A feeling was in the air. A happy feeling that lit up the faces of those who danced. Those faces shining with perspiration wore a look of complete abandon. Not caring for the moment about troubles or problems, their bodies quivering under smiles that seemed to promise "after the dance."

I watched that multitude of people pulsing, boiling, melting, looking for all the world like sweet fudge. I thought this is my favorite dessert — Brown Sugar. If only I could make an album that had this feeling.

But how can you capture this feeling? In discussing this with Alfred Lion (Pres., Blue Note) we both agreed that standards and show tunes were not the answer. To get to the "soul" I decided to do show soul tunes.

Brown Sugar was written with this in mind. I really pictured the dancers in my head. I saw them as they danced first the twist to the first twelve bars. Then switching to the Bop for the second twelve and eight bar turnback. Then back to the twist, I could see them so plainly that instead of saying "One More Time" at the end, I say "Now where you think you're going girl" because I can see the girls heading back to their seats.

Next is The Right Time. Takes me back to Detroit where I first heard Ray Charles do it. I remember how he and the Rayettes electrified the place with this tune. The ensemble chord corresponds with the word Baby! shouted by the Rayettes.

Have You Ever Had The Blues. A tune done by Lloyd Price with the big swinging bond behind him.

The Midnight Sun Will Never Set was written by the wonderful, soulful Quincy Jones. I heard this tune done by Sarah Vaughan, and the beauty of it has made it a regular part of my repertoire.

Next Time You See Me is a rhythm and blues tune I picked up from juke boxes in various clubs I have worked.

All Night Long was written by Curtis Lewis and the soul in this tune does not stop with its melody for in the lyrics I find:

 Never heard her speak a single word of love 
 Never knew her favorite song 
 'Cause she speaks to me in dreams 
 ...I dream 
 All Night Long 

Whether we succeeded in cooking our "soul pie" I shall have to leave to you. But everything was right in the "Blue Note Kitchen." Along were my regular chefs, Eddie Wright, Clarence Johnston. We were joined by a young man from Lima, Ohio, Joe Henderson. Proud baker of two "pies" of his own: Page One (Blue Note 4140) and Our Thing (Blue Note 4152).

And what happened that rainy night in March is contained between these cover sheets. A few ounces of black plastic grooved with the mood of an evening spent playing the blues.

—FREDDIE ROACH

Cover Photo by RONNIE BRATHWAIIE
Cover Design by REID MILES
Model: CLARA LEWIS BUGOS
Recording by RUDY VAN GELDER

75th Anniversary Reissue CD Liner Notes

In 1961, Freddie Roach, who at age 30 had been freelancing in the New York-New Jersey area for 12 years, joined Ike Quebec's group and gained exposure through his appearances on Quebec's "Heavy Soul" and "It Might As Well Be Spring." Alfred Lion signed the organist to a two-year contract with Blue Note during which time he made five distinct and high-quality albums.

"Brown Sugar" was his fourth album for the label, and like his previous effort "Good Move," he built the album around his regular trio with guitarist Eddie Wright and drummer Clarence Johnston with some special guests. On "Good Move," he added Hank Mobley and Blue Mitchell to the band and chose an interesting program of songs.

Here he adds Joe Henderson and selects an equally intriguing range of material from Quincy Jones's "The Midnight Sun Will Never Set" to R&B classics from Ray Charles ("The Right Time") and Lloyd Price ("Have You Ever Had The Blues"). Typically, Roach's music never panders or shows off. His music is soulful but subtle and well-rounded.

Michael Cuscuna