Clifford Brown

About

A huge influence on many jazz trumpeters and in 1972 he was inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame posthumously.

Before Fame

He began playing at an early age and was given a trumpet when he turned thirteen so he could continue learning.

Trivia

He did not use drugs or drink alcohol, unlike most trumpet players at the time.

Family Life

He was married to his second wife, LaRue, for only two years, as he died in a car accident on their second anniversary.

Associated With

When Brown was in the hospital after a car accident in 1950, Dizzy Gillespie visited him and encouraged him to keep playing music.