Bobby Brown (musician)
Bobby Brown (* 1938 in Olyphant , Arkansas ) is an American rockabilly and rock 'n' roll musician.
Life
Childhood and youth
Brown grew up in a musical family. His father played the guitar and his mother made music on the washboard. Brown sang old folk and gospel songs with his two sisters and four brothers. Country music was primarily heard on the radio . When the young Elvis Presley experienced his rise in 1955, Brown was hit by the "rockabilly fever":
“Then from a Memphis radio station, we heard something different. It wasn't blues like the black people sang, nor was it hillbilly, we knew all those songs and sang every word. They said it was Elvis Presley and he was singing something called Rock and Roll. We had heard Bill Monroe sing " Blue Moon of Kentucky " and we knew every word. Now this guy Elvis was singing that same song differently, fast with a rhythm beat. I knew right then that I loved rock and roll and just had to sing and play it. ”
Brown learned on the guitar to play his older brother and was with a friend on a show KNBY.
Career
Brown quickly built a fan base in his hometown, and after graduating from high school in 1956, he moved to St. Louis , Missouri , where he toured the city's clubs with a band. With his own band The Curios , consisting of Brown (vocals / guitar), Shorty Stewart (lead guitar), Tommy Jones (bass) and Johnny Welker (drums), he then moved to Jonesboro , Arkansas, where he continued in bars and clubs Clubs performed. Brown and his band tried to get a recording deal with Sun Records in Memphis , Tennessee , and also played Scotty Moore of Fernwood Records . Two tapes were recorded for Fernwood, but they were not released.
In a club, Brown and his band were discovered and signed by Arlen Vaden, owner of the Vaden Records label . He took the musicians to Cincinnati , Ohio , where they recorded at WCKY's studio Down at Big Mary's House and I Get the Blues , which were released on record in 1958.
Vaden then brought Brown in for another session. It was a "super session" of various rockabilly and rock'n'roll artists, on which Joyce Green , Larry Donn and Teddy Redell, among others, recorded titles. Donn (bass) and Redell (piano) also played on Brown's second single, Please, Please Baby / Bobby's Blues , which was released in 1959. As popular as Brown was, a hit didn't want to come and then the band broke up. With drummer Johnny Welker, Brown joined Sonny Burgess , whose band had also broken up. Together they went on tour with Johnny Cash ; Brown remembers often writing songs with Cash after the shows.
In the early 1960s, Brown formed a new band that consisted of Johnny Adams (bass), Raymond Thompson (drums / harmonica), Tommy Holder (guitar) and Brown himself (vocals / guitar). With this band he played for years on the east coast and also in Canada. In his career he had the opportunity to play with stars like Narvel Felts , Bo Diddley , Ronnie Hawkins , Conway Twitty , Duane Eddy , Del Shannon , Wanda Jackson , Chubby Checker , Big Al Downing and many more. During this time, records were repeatedly made by small labels, but none of them brought the desired success.
Brown is still a musician these days and often gives concerts with Larry Donn. In 2006 he played at the Hemsby Rock'n'Roll Weekend.
Discography
year | title | Label # |
---|---|---|
1958 | Down at Big Mary's House / I Get the Blues (At Midnight) | Vaden 45-100 |
EP
|
Vaden EP-107 | |
1959 | Bobby's Blues / Please, Please Baby | Vaden 45-109 |
1960 | Dream Date / Everybody Has a Dream | XYZ 610 |
1962 | Raunchy Twist / Highland Fling | Fargo LF 1021 |
1962 | Dreamer / Falling from Paradise | Pak 1313 |
1962/63 | Falling from Paradise / Dreamer | Curio Q100 / 1 |
1963 | Lawdy, Miss Clawdy / 3000 Miles | Arc 1025 |
1963 | Chicken Back, Part I / Chicken Back, Part II | Curio Q102 / 3 |
1964 | Ride the Love Train / Coast to San Francisco | Allied AR 6356 |
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Article in the RHoF
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Brown, Bobby |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American rockabilly and rock'n'roll musician |
DATE OF BIRTH | 1938 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Olyphant (Arkansas) |