Another talent taken before his time was trumpeter Clifford Brown, who died in an auto accident at age 26. Brown stood alongside Dizzy Gillespie and Fats Navarro as the hardest of the hard bop trumpeter players. After stints with Tadd Dameron and Lionel Hampton, Brown joined Art Blakey and Horace Silver in an embryonic version of the Jazz Messengers (Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers on Blue Note). Later, Brown paired with drummer Max Roach for several dates on EmArcy, the best now available being Clifford Brown & Max Roach and Brown & Roach Inc. There were several good sessions on Blue Note, collected on The Best of Clifford Brown. Chronic collectors will want the multidisc Brownie: The Complete EmArcy Recordings on Verve or the more affordable 4-CD Complete Blue Note Recordings. (Karl Pallmeyer)