Ruth Brown
Michael, Katelyn, Kellie, Grace & Kyle
Group 1
Early life
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Born Ruth Weston in Portsmouth, Virginia on
January 12, 1928.
She was the daughter of a church choir director,
however she preferred pop music and rebelled
from tradition.
In this rebellious spirit, Ruth ran away from home
at the age of 17 with Jimmy Brown to Detroit,
Michigan.
Early Life continued
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This fling, which later resulted in marriage, didn't
last long, as Ruth later found out that Jimmy was
already married. Therefore, her own marriage to
him was legally void.
Ruth had already established some popularity in
Detroit as Ruth Brown, so she kept her false
husband's name.
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Ruth's first gig was at the Frolic bar. There she was
discovered by Lucky Millinder who recruited her as
a backup singer for his orchestra.
She was later fired for
bringing sodas to the
rest of the band, which
Lucky considered
degrading.
He stranded Brown in
D.C..
A Rising Star
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It was in D.C. where Brown met
Blanche Calloway, who owned
Crystal Caverns nightclub. She
performed there until DJ Willis
Conover discovered her in
1948.
DJ Willis recommended Brown
to Atlantic Records.
Signing Contract
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Ruth signed with Atlantic
Records while in the hospital
She was in the hospital with
two broken legs after a car
accident
Early Songs
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After a full recovery, Brown came back with a
bang and recorded the song "So Long" which
made the top 10 for R&B in 1949.
Her next recording, "Teardrops from my Eyes"
was her first No. 1 hit, and gave her the
nickname The Girl With a Tear in Her Voice.
Success
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Ruth had a number of hit songs, most notably
"(Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean" and "5-1015 Hours".
Atlantic Records became known as The House that
Ruth Built.
Some people joked that R&B actually stood for Ruth
and Brown.
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More Misfortune
When the 1960's rolled
around, Atlantic dumped
Brown nearly penniless as
her profits were used to
pay for recording time and
tour fees.
Broke, Brown moved to Long Island where she
worked various part time jobs.
She remarried twice, both ending in divorce
Acting career
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In 1975 Brown made the move to L.A. to star in
the musical Selma.
From 1979-80, she starred on the sitcom Hello,
Larry.
She performed in many Broadway musicals. In
1989, Brown won a Tony Award for her
performance in Black and Blue and a Grammy for
the album Blues on Broadway.
Later Life
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To prevent anymore mistreatment by the music
industry, Ruth worked tirelessly to make sure artists
were not exploited by their labels.
- co founded the Rhythm and Blues Foundation
to try to get royalties back to deserving artists
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Ruth died on November 17, 2006 due to heart
complications.
Musical Style
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Ruth Brown was one of the first female R&B
singers. Every black woman before her was
either a jazz, blues, or gospel vocalist. She was all
of those with the added element of rhythm. For
this Brown got the nickname Miss Rhythm
She is noted for bringing a pop music style to
R&B music.
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Her early repertoire was mostly popular ballads
but Atlantic Records convinced her to switch to
R&B. However, Brown retained her "pop" style.
She was a combination of sass and innocence, and
was extremely funky. The tone of her voice was
mighty and feisty. She could sound as if she were
hurting, joyfully lusty, or both at once.
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During the sessions for “Teardrops From My Eyes”,
her voice cracked upward into a squeal. Atlantic
Records liked it and called it a “tear” and this sound
became her trademark for a string of hits.
She achieved enormous popularity with black and
white audiences alike.
Legacy
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Ruth Brown's greatest hits provided a template for
much of the rock and roll music that followed in
their wake.
In addition to her musical legacy, she also left
future artists a more artist-friendly environment,
thanks to her Rhythm and Blues Foundation
In 1993, Ruth Brown was inducted into the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame
Music That Influenced Ruth Brown
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Ruth Brown’s main influences included Sarah
Vaughan, Billie Holiday, and Dinah Washington.
Other influences include Ella Fitzgerald, and Fats
Domino.
Brown first started singing in a gospel choir at her
church, but these three jazz artists inspired her at
an adolescent age to run away from home to
pursue her music career and love life. But it was
Brown’s rich “shouting voice” that lead her to
become the “Queen of R&B”.
Sarah Vaughan was a very influential
jazz singer. Her vibrato was superb,
along with the range her voice
reached. She was able to influence
many other artists, including Ruth
Brown, and start a type of revolution
in which female singers became more
and more popular.
Dinah Washington was known as the
“Queen of Jukebox”. She had the
most distinct enunciation of words of
all the singers of that time, which
made it easier for the crowd to
recognize and repeat the lyrics to her
songs.
Billie Holiday was a very influential
singer in the way that she did not
grow up in a “perfect family”.
Abandoned by her father at a
young age and shortly thereafter
left by her mother, Billie Holiday
grew up with her other relatives
who mistreated her. She grew up
in a poor environment with very
little education, but was still able to
make it big-time in the jazz singing
industry. A PBS article states
“Holiday is often considered the
foremost female singer in jazz
history, a view substantiated by her
influence on later singers.”
Other Popular Music
Other popular artists of the time
included Ray Charles, Little
Richard, and Fats Domino. These
three singers were all influenced
and influencing the crossover from
R&B to Rock and Roll through their
songs.
Ray Charles was a “Father of soul”
and in the 1950’s combined jazz
and gospel music to create
legendary songs. Although not in
the same technical genre, Ruth
Brown and Ray Charles mostly
appealed to the same crowds, and
their soul/R&B backgrounds are
very similar.
Fats Domino was one of the six main
pivotal figures of rock and roll. His
songs crossed over from R&B to rock
and roll, and one of his key unique
features was that he sang many songs
that contained falsetto. Rather than
short phrases, he was able to sing up
to 16 bars in falsetto at a time.
Little Richard was also one of the six
main pivotal figures in rock and roll.
His style is one that led to most
mainstream rock. He grew up in a
religious family, singing for the church
and soon turned to R&B for his
creative work. He had a great
“shouting voice”, similar to Ruth
Brown.
Artists Influenced by Ruth Brown
Ruth Brown influenced many future
artists, including Aretha franklin,
Janis Joplin, and Tina turner. Brown
also used her power for good in
that she promoted rights for all
musicians' with regard to
contracts, royalties, and
production companies in the
Rhythm and Blues Foundation.
Aretha Franklin was a “child prodigy”
in her Baptist Church gospel choir.
She grew up with a lot of talent,
but in her young adult years
switched over to singing soul
music, a close sister to R&B.
Janis Joplin had blues inspired
vocals and, like Ruth brown,
sang in a church choir as a
child. She strived to get out
of her small hometown to a
larger community of
musicians.
Tina Turner, unlike most soul
singers, did not grow up
singing in a church gospel
choir. Rather, she started
singing formally when she
was older. She turned to
R&B music in her times of
trial as a young adult, and
later became famous and
even crossed over to the
pop charts in her hits.
Civil Issues of 1950s
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Separate but Equal
- As a result of this being still present, Brown spent
much of her time touring in the South
Rosa Parks
- example of how black women were still not
accepted as equal at this time
- Brown had to traverse these issues in order to be
successful
References
Aretha Franklin Biography. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved June 24, 2013, from
http://www.biography.com/people/aretha-franklin-9301157
Billie Holiday. (2013). PBS. Retrieved June 24, 2013, from
http://www.pbs.org/jazz/biography/artist_id_holiday_billie.htm
Dinah Washington: A Queen in Turmoil. (2004). NPR Music website. Retrieved June 23, 2013, from
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3872390
Fats Domino Biography. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved June 24, 2013, from
http://www.biography.com/people/fats-domino-9276748
Fontenot, R. (2013) "Ruth Brown." Oldies Music. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from
http://oldies.about.com/od/oldieshistory/a/womenshistory.htm
Janis Joplin Biography. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved June 24, 2013, from
http://www.biography.com/people/janis-joplin-9357941
Little Richard Biography. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved June 23, 2013, from
http://www.biography.com/people/little-richard-9383571
Pareles, J. (2006, November 17). Ruth Brown, R&B Singer and Actress, Dies at 78 - New York Times. The New
York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/17/arts/music/17cnd-brown.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Ray Charles Biography. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved June 24, 2013, from
http://www.biography.com/people/ray-charles-9245001
Sarah Vaughan. (2013). All Music website. Retrieved June 23, 2013, from
http://www.allmusic.com/artist/sarah-vaughan-mn0000204901
Tina Turner Biography. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved June 24, 2013, from
http://www.biography.com/people/tina-turner-9512276