Oscar Brown

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Oscar Brown, Jr (October 10, 1926–May 29, 2005) was a singer, songwriter, playwright, poet, and civil rights activist. He ran for office in the Illinois state legislature and U.S. Congress, both unsuccessfully.

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[edit] Early life

Born and raised on the south side of Chicago, he was named for his father who was a successful attorney and real estate broker. His singing debut was on the radio show Secret City at age fifteen. Brown attended Englewood High School in Chicago, the University of Wisconsin, and Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) but did not obtain a degree. He served a stint in the U.S. Army, officially segregated until 1948, where his views on "race relations" were considered "subversive." In his youth, he was even a member of the Communist Party, USA, which ultimately also decided Oscar was "too subversive"; he was suspected to be a Black Nationalist.

[edit] Humanitarian work

Some of Brown's musical plays involved Chicago street gang members. These plays affected hundreds of young lives in a positive way. [citation needed] He founded The Oscar Brown, Jr. H.I.P. Legacy Foundation to carry on his work. But his first attempt at mounting a major musical stage show in New York City was "Kicks & Co.," c. 1960. Host Dave Garroway turned over an entire broadcast of the "Today" show to Brown to perform numbers from the show and try to raise the necessary funds to launch it on the stage. As with virtually all of Brown's theatrical endeavors, the public was not won over sufficiently to allow financial breakeven despite acclaim by some critics. (His longest-running relative success, thanks to participation by Muhammad Ali, was "Big-Time Buck White.") "Kicks & Co." is set on an all-African-American college campus in the south, during the early days of attempted desegregation. The character Mr. Kicks is an emissary of Satan sent to try to derail these efforts, in which the play's protagonist, Ernest Black, has become involved. Another notable musical show, "Joy," saw two incarnations--1966 and 1969--and again addressed social issues of the time. Appearing with Oscar were his wife, Jean Pace, and the Brazilian singer/accordionist Sivuca. RCA released the original cast recording around 1970 (long out of print).

[edit] Publications

Brown wrote at least 1,000 songs (only 125 have been published), twelve albums, and over a dozen musical plays. Paperback book: WHAT IT IS--POEMS AND OPINIONS OF OSCAR BROWN JR., Oyster Knife Publishing (Chicago, IL, USA), 2005, 102 pgs., edited by Arthur Ade Amaker and Oscar Brown, Jr.: includes lyrics to some of his better-known songs as well as lyrics to songs Brown never got to record.

[edit] Albums

  • Max Roach: "Freedom Now Suite" (c. 1959)--lyricist for songs performed by Abbey Lincoln
  • "Sin and Soul...And Then Some" (1960)--available on CD
  • "Between Heaven And Hell" (1962)--out of print LP [alternate takes of some tunes appear on "Sin And Soul" CD]
  • "Oscar Brown, Jr. Tells It Like It Is/In a New Mood" (1962/63)--two original LP releases combined on single CD
  • "Mr. Oscar Brown, Jr. Goes To Washington" (1964) [live nightclub recording]--available on CD
  • "Finding A New Friend" (w/Luiz Henrique) (1966)--long out of print LP
  • "Joy" (1970)--long out of print LP
  • "Movin' On" (early 1970s)--available on CD
  • "Fresh" (early 1970s)--previously available on CD, apparently out of print
  • "Brother Where Are You" (mid-1970s)--as above for availability
  • "Then & Now" (1995)--released on CD, may be available
  • "Live Every Minute" (1998) [backed by German NDR Big Band]--available on import CD

[edit] Musicals

  • "Kicks & Co."
  • "Oscar Brown, Jr. Entertains" (one-man show in London, UK)
  • "Lyrics Of Sunshine And Shadow"
  • "Summer In The City"
  • "Opportunity Please Knock"
  • "Joy '66"; "Joy '69"
  • "Big-Time Buck White"
  • "Slave Song"
  • "Oscar Brown, Jr.'s Back In Town" (won two local Emmys for Chicago TV)
  • "Great Nitty Gritty"

[edit] Songs

  • "The Snake"
  • "Work Song" (classic lyrics to Nat Adderley's music)
  • "All Blues" (classic lyrics to Miles Davis' music)
  • "Dat Dere" (classic lyrics to Bobby Timmons' music)
  • "Afro Blue" (classic lyrics to Mongo Santamaria's music, sometimes recorded by others without crediting the lyricist)
  • "Signifyin’ Monkey"
  • "Forty Acres And A Mule"
  • "Brother Where Are You"
  • "Brown Baby"
  • "World Full Of Gray"
  • "But I Was Cool"
  • "The Tree And Me"

...and many more

[edit] Media appearances

  • Negro Newsfront (1940s), radio show
  • "The Tonight Show," with Steve Allen (c. 1960)
  • "The Today Show," with Dave Garroway (c. 1960)
  • Jazz Scene U.S.A. (1960s), television show--Host
  • "From Jump Street: The Story of Black Music" (early 1980s)--13-part public TV series, USA [host]
  • "Def Poetry" Season 2 (2002) [poet]

[edit] External links

[edit] Sources

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