Rob Brown Ensemble

The New York-based alto saxophonist Rob Brown represented a new hope for many jazz listeners who felt their music might be becoming a mite cowardly as the '80s began winding down. With many of the genre's players more intent on modeling suits than blowing hard, the sound of Brown's whirling dervish solos, often delivered with his neck inflated like an Australian lizard, was the sound of freedom. Brown and his associates represent a welcome rekindling of the fires that had been burning in the '60s and '70s. To the free jazz fan, there might be no better '90s combo than bassist...