Roy Brown (blues musician)

Roy Brown (born September 10, 1925 in New Orleans , † May 25, 1981 in San Fernando , California ) was an American blues singer and pioneer of rock 'n' roll . His greatest successes were Long about Midnight and Hard Luck Blues .

biography

Roy Brown was born in New Orleans in 1925 and came to Eunice as a child , where he founded a gospel quartet in 1938 . In 1942 he went to Los Angeles and fought as a boxer, among other things. In 1945 he won a singing competition. He then tried to make a living as a singer in the style of Bing Crosby .

Career start

Roy Brown - Good Rocking Tonight

In 1946 he recorded the title Deep Sea Diver for the gold star label, which did not make it into the charts. That same year, Brown wrote the jump blues Good Rocking Tonight . He returned to New Orleans and offered the piece to the popular blues singer Wynonie Harris , who initially turned it down. In 1947 Brown finally recorded the song himself in Cosimo Matassa's J&M studios , this time for the DeLuxe label. The title was released in September 1947 as DeLuxe # 1093 and reached number 13 on the R&B charts . Now Harris recognized the potential of the title, took it on and made the piece the No. 1 hit on the R&B charts in May 1948 . Elvis Presley , who was still under contract to Sun Records at the time, recorded the song with an authentic R&B shout vocal style on September 10, 1954.

More Achievements

Roy Brown - Hard Luck Blues

With his group "Mighty-Mighty Men" Brown finally performed all over the USA. His fifth single for DeLuxe Records, Long about Midnight , reached number one in the R&B charts . His first million-seller was the self-written Hard Luck Blues , recorded on April 19, 1950. Other notable titles by Roy Brown include Boogie at Midnight ( September 1949) or Love Don't Love Nobody (June 1950). He stayed with DeLuxe until the end of 1952, then switched to the King Records label , which DeLuxe had previously acquired. His first single there appeared in January 1953 under the title Travellin 'Man . However, these and another 15 singles no longer made it into the charts.

That only succeeded again with the change to the larger Imperial Records in 1956. His version of the Dave Bartholomew composition Let The Four Winds Blow , recorded by Bartholomew himself in March 1955 and later made a rock and roll hit by Fats Domino , reached number 5 on the R&B charts and the top 40 of the pop charts (number 38) in May 1957. Brown made another foray into the Top 100 of the Pop Charts (89th place) with his cover version of the Buddy Knox hit Party Doll . With Bartholomew as producer, a total of 20 pieces were recorded between 1956 and 1958, some of them produced in the New Orleans sound of the J & M studios.

Comeback and death

The crossover to rock and roll succeeded Brown because of his original Blue style, rather an adult audience and fewer teenagers approached that time were the main audience of rock and roll, not permanent. In 1970 there was a comeback when he performed with Johnny Otis at the Monterey Jazz Festival and the resulting LP was alongside established - but somewhat forgotten - artists such as Roy Milton , Big Joe Turner or Brown, as well as up-and-coming musicians such as Shuggie Otis or Margie Evans presented. In 1978 he released the LP Cheapest price in town on his own Faith Records label , which included new compositions and on which, alongside experienced studio and live musicians such as saxophonist Hollis Gilmore (including Jimmy McCracklin ) or drummer Charles Brown (not related to the pianist of the same name) also the well-known guitarist Pee Wee Crayton acted as musicians. In the same year he toured England.

Roy Brown died of a heart attack in May 1981 in San Fernando, California . In the same year he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame .

Discography (selection of singles)

Roy Brown:

• Deep Sea Diver / By Baby Bye (Goldstar 636), 1946
• Good Rockin 'Tonight / Lollipop Mama (DeLuxe 1093), September 1947
• Special Lesson No. 1 / Woman's A Wonderful Thing (DeLuxe 1098), October 1946
• Roy Brown's Boogie / Please Don't Go (DeLuxe 1107), November 1947
• Mighty Mighty Man / Miss Fanny Brown (DeLuxe 1128), December 1947

Roy Brown & His Mighty-Mighty Men:

• Long 'Bout Midnight / Whose Hat Is That (DeLuxe 1154), March 1948
• 'Fore Day In The Morning / Rainy Weather Blues (DeLuxe 1198), November 1948
• Rockin 'At Midnight / Judgment Day Blues (DeLuxe 3212), January 1949
• Please Don't Go (Come Back, Baby) / Riding High (DeLuxe 3226), June 1949
• Boogie At Midnight / The Blues Got Me Again (DeLuxe 3300), September 1949
• Hard Luck Blues / New Rebecca (DeLuxe 3304), April 1950
• Love Don't Love Nobody / Dreaming Blues (DeLuxe 3306), June 1950
• Cadillac Baby / 'Long About Sundown (DeLuxe 3308), August 1950
• Train Time Blues / Big Town (DeLuxe 3318), June 1951
• Good Rockin 'Man / Bar Room Blues (DeLuxe 3319), September 1951

Roy Brown:

• Travellin 'Man / Hurry Hurry Back Baby (King 4602), January 1953
• Grandpa Stole My Baby / Money Can't Buy Love (King 4609), February 1953
• Trouble At Midnight / Bootleggin 'Baby (King 4704), March 1954
• My Little Angel Child / She's Gone Too Long (King 4834), October 1954
• Party Doll / I'm Sticking With You (Imperial 5427), March 1957
• Let The Four Winds Blow / Diddy-Y-Diddy-O (Imperial 5439), May 1957