Stories from the Road

Clifford is currently on his 8th trombone. It all started ... << read more >>

"We found him, but we'll never get him."

This short story from Cleveland Brown shares how Clifford came to be with Kool & the Gang. Kool's brothers, Amir and Khalis Bayyan, came upon Clifford playing a gig. They knew right then that they'd found the sound, and the soul, that would enhance Kool & the Gang both musically and personally. When they met Clifford, they were even more convinced. Everyone just hit it off, vibing and finding so much in common. Khalis (K&tG's Musical Band Director) went back to Kool and said he'd found the right guy but they probably couldn't get him.

That's because Clifford honed his "bone" skills with many of the great jazz masters and was clearly making a name for himself in that genre. Crossing over to Kool & the Gang would give Clifford an opportunity to play popular music, introduce his sound to an entirely new audience, and add that tremendously throaty yet silky and undeniably rich trombone slide to the effervescent Kool sound. It turned out to be a great move for everyone ... especially the fans.