Brown experiences a mash up

Recorded during our current socially distanced times, Brown and her band — Chris Walters (piano), John Ragusa (flute), Garry West (bass) and Jordan Perlson (drums and percussion) — filmed the recording of the track at Compass Sound Studio (with Ragusa recording remotely in New York City).

The distinctive banjo sound comes from the Julia Belle "low banjo" designed by Brown in collaboration with Deering Banjos. The video was filmed and edited by Joseph Spence. The track recording will appear on a 2021 release by Brown.

"'Here Comes the Sun' is a song I've loved for years," she said. "But I never thought about playing it on the banjo until I was inspired by stories of hospitals playing it over their PA systems to encourage staff and patients in their battle against COVID. As I started working on it I realized that the tune has a lot in common rhythmically and harmonically with 'Aguas de Marco' ('Waters of March'), a Tom Jobim classic that's one of my favorite melodies and recordings. So I put the two together and came up with this mash-up — setting the low banjo against a tapestry of piano and jazz flute."

Brown is currently working on a follow-up to her 2015 album, "Song of the Banjo," and continues her work as a producer, most recently with Special Consensus. She performs both with the Alison Brown Quintet and The First Ladies of Bluegrass.