Nicholas Payton and Butcher Brown Release Collaborative Album 'A Supreme Blue'
The jazz collaboration pays homage to John Coltrane's A LOVE SUPREME on Blue Note Records.
Trumpeter Nicholas Payton and Richmond-based jazz collective Butcher Brown have released a collaborative album titled A SUPREME BLUE, out today.
GRAMMY Award-winning multi-instrumentalist, producer, and arranger Nicholas Payton teams up with Virginia-bred collective Butcher Brown for A SUPREME BLUE, a bold and deeply considered reimagining of two of the most revered albums in recorded music, Miles Davis's KIND OF BLUE (1959) and John Coltrane's A LOVE SUPREME (1965). Created in honor of the centennial year of both Davis and Coltrane, the album arrives digitally on Concord Jazz with vinyl release to follow on August 14. The second track, 'Pursuance,' is available now.
Recorded at Spacebomb Studios in Richmond, Virginia, A SUPREME BLUE does not position itself as tribute. Payton, in collaboration with Butcher Brown, brings the full weight of his musical voice to a band that meets him at every turn. The album's rhythmic architecture draws on the modal and spiritual common ground shared by both source records, refracted through the pulse of House music, dub, and the full breadth of the Black American musical tradition.
Liner notes for A SUPREME BLUE are written by Ashley Kahn, author of both KIND OF BLUE: THE MAKING OF THE MILES DAVIS MASTERPIECE and A LOVE SUPREME: THE STORY OF JOHN COLTRANE'S SIGNATURE ALBUM, making him a rare voice capable of fully contextualizing what Payton and Butcher Brown have achieved here. The album was mastered by Michael Fossenkemper at Turtletone Studios, with photography by Ryan Gary of The Sunroom and package design by Jamie Breiwick. The album will be available digitally and as a 2-LP limited edition of 1,500 worldwide in standard black vinyl.
TRACKLIST
1. So What (Miles Davis)
2. Freddie Freeloader (Miles Davis)
3. Blue in Green (Miles Davis)
4. All Blues (Miles Davis)
5. Flamenco Sketches (Miles Davis)
6. Acknowledgement (John Coltrane)
7. Resolution (John Coltrane)
8. Pursuance (John Coltrane)
9. Psalm (John Coltrane)
PERSONNEL
Nicholas Payton: Trumpet, Rhodes, Piano, Vocoder, Vocals, Thumb Piano
Tennishu: Tenor Saxophone
Morgan Burrs: Guitar
DJ Harrison: Keyboards, Melodica, Guitar
R4ND4ZZO: Bass Guitar, Synth Bass
Corey Fonville: Drums, Percussion
Conceptualized by Nicholas Payton
Produced by Nicholas Payton and Butcher Brown
About Nicholas Payton
Nicholas Payton is a New Orleans-born GRAMMY Award-winning trumpet virtuoso, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and arranger whose career spans more than three decades across swing, funk, R&B, and the avant-garde. A singular force in Black American music, Payton has consistently repositioned himself at the intersection of tradition and innovation across a catalog of acclaimed recordings and performances.
About Butcher Brown
Butcher Brown is a Richmond, Virginia-based collective formed in 2009 whose music draws on jazz, hip-hop, funk, and electronic music in equal measure. Comprising DJ Harrison, Marcus 'Tennishu' Tenney, Morgan Burrs, R4ND4ZZO, and Corey Fonville, the band has built a devoted following through relentless touring and a series of critically lauded recordings, earning a reputation as one of the most creatively restless ensembles in contemporary music.
