The best thing about reviewing music is how much you learn from the experience. One lesson I should have learned long ago was that, no sooner have you made a proclamation about one subject or another, it's inevitable you will be swallowing those words the next day. It doesn't help that I'm occasionally given to spouting sweeping generalities in a field dominated by individuals.

In my defence I will offer up that it seems when it comes to music and musicians, the universe takes great delight in keeping humble. There's no way on earth I'd ever assume that I know even an iota of what there is to know about popular music, let alone a specific genre like jazz. However, on occasion it feels safe to say things because I'm speaking from the point of view of the uninitiated; the vast majority of people like myself who know so little about jazz.

Only twenty-four hours ago I was going on about the scarcity of flute players in the world of popular music, and jazz in particular, and I was feeling like I was on pretty solid ground. How many flute players do you know I asked - challenging readers to come up with a name aside from Eric Dolphy - as a lead in to a review of Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble. How was I to know that the very next disc that I would be reviewing would also feature a flute playing jazz musician?

How was I to know that Ari Brown not only played tenor and soprano saxophones but flute as well? I'd never heard of him before receiving the DVD Live At The Green Mill from Delmark Records in the mail. The cover is a picture of a man, who I assumed was Ari, playing two saxophones at once and gave no clue as to what other things he was capable of. I defy anyone to look at that picture, not knowing anything about the man, and know that he plays flute.

Well he does, making him and Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull fame (I can't believe I forgot about him when I was talking about popular musicians who are flute players) the only male, non-classically trained flutists, I know of aside from Eric Dolphy. Of course once I started to find out a little more about Ari Brown, his ability to play multiple instruments made sense.

He has long been considered one of the most versatile jazz musicians in Chicago having played in the house band at the Burning Spear where he's backed everyone from The Four Tops, through Lou Rawls and B.B. King. At other times he's also worked with Lester Bowie, Elvin Jones, and is a member of Kahil El'Zabar's Ritual Trio and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.