LaRue – Clifford Brown

This passionate, romantic ballad shows a side of Clifford Brown that we wish there could have been more of. It's essayed beautifully by Kenny Dorham on the original recording. The basic key of this song is F minor, but we honor the original manuscript which has an F major key signature. There is certainly a bit of major tonality in the song as well; the end of the A section modulates to C major, with F major implied in the resolution of the melody back to the next section. The melody is cyclical throughout. The bridge modulates in a long circle of fourths to G♭ major.

Our lead sheet is based on the Kenny Dorham recording. It includes the recorded intro, which features harp chords—mostly a descending series of major 7ths with sharp 5ths—over a bass pedal point. The coda extends the melody for four more measures, with rhythm section chords answering the melody notes. After the head on the recording, Kenny Dorham solos on the two A sections and B and takes the melody out at C; this solo format is shown in our lead sheet, but this song could certainly be opened up for longer solos.

Our audio clip starts just before Kenny's entrance.

Don Sickler: The following is in LaRue's own words [it can be found in the liner notes in "The Complete Blue Note and Pacific Jazz Recordings of Clifford Brown" (Mosaic Records)]

"One starlit evening we went to Santa Monica Beach. Clifford was playing with the sounds of the Pacific Ocean accompanying him. The music was lovely! The tune was one that he had just written and I was hearing for the first time. He called it LaRue. He asked me to marry his music and him." - LaRue Brown Watson

First of all, my interpretation is that the song was written shortly before they were married. They were married June 26, 1954. My wife Maureen just found my notes from a conversation I had with LaRue back in the last century. On the notepaper I had written: "K.D. won Scrabble" therefore Kenny got to record LaRue first." I also remember LaRue saying that Kenny Dorham was a good friend of theirs, and that all three of them liked to play Scrabble together.


Clifford never recorded LaRue.

Kenny's first released leader album after Clifford's death in 1957 was "Jazz Contrasts." The second session for that record was on May 27, 1957, where he recorded LaRue. I'm sure it was a very emotional recording for Kenny.

The following year (January 6, 1958), it was Harold Land's opportunity to record LaRue on a session for the Curtis Counce project "Carl's Blues." Harold plays his heart out on his tribute to Clifford!

Here are four more great trumpet players who've also recorded LaRue. Bobby Shew (1981), Warren Vache - cornet (Alan Barnes 1999 session), Jason Palmer (2009), Jeremy Pelt (Dimitry Baevsky 2010 session).