Sam Brown (musician)

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Sam Brown (born Samantha Brown, on 7 October 1964, in Stratford, London, England), is the daughter of the rock'n'roll star Joe Brown and singer Vicki Brown. She is an English female singer-songwriter best known for her work in the late 1980s, although she has continued to release material since then.

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[edit] Career

Brown is known for her expressive vocal style, and the ability to transcend musical styles easily. Her best-known song was Stop!, released in 1988; she released an album by the same name that year. Other singles taken from this album included "Walking Back To Me" and "This Feeling". The album Stop! sold over two million copies worldwide, doing particularly well in the UK and Australia. In 1990, Sam released her second album April Moon, containing two hit singles, "With A Little Love" and "Kissing Gate" and showed progression in both musical style and songwriting. Three further singles were lifted from the album; "Mindworks", "Once in Your Life" and "As One".

Brown has been quoted as saying during the time since this initial success, that she came to realise that she has no interest in being a "star", and prefers instead to create music that holds meaning for both her and her audience.[citation needed] This substance over style approach, although hinted at in her first two albums, is much more evident in her output since this time. Brown was not willing to compromise, or be pushed around by executives at record companies, as the next chapter in her career would prove without doubt.[citation needed]

Brown's third album, 43 Minutes, is a dark, obviously deeply personal and emotional work which was written and recorded around the time that her mother was dying from cancer. This record is not instantly accessible, but with repeated listening reveals great maturity and depth of interpretation of the dark subject matter. Song titles such as "Fear of Life", "Letting Go" and "Into The Night" give a clue to the direction of the album. A&M, Brown's record label at the time were not happy with the album and wanted some potential hit singles recorded and added to the tracklist. Brown however was not willing to compromise and after a protracted battle, she bought back the masters of the album and released it on her own label Pod Music. Very few copies were produced, making it instantly collectible (and almost impossible to find), although it was reissued in 2004 (again via Pod Music).

In 1995, Sam had a minor chart hit in a duet with Fish, entitled "Just Good Friends".

In 1997, she returned again with Box, released via the independent music label Demon Records, and showing further growth as both a musician and songwriter. Tracks on this album include "Embrace The Darkness", "Whisper" and "I Forgive You" which was co-written with Maria McKee. McKee's version of the song appeared on her album, You Gotta Sin to Get Saved.

2000 saw the release of ReBoot and a return to more accessible lyrics, coupled with strong musical compositions and a strong musical direction. This album was released via another independent label Mud Hut Records, and a single "In Light Of All That's Gone Before" was also issued. The album is Brown's most mature work to date, and possibly her most instantly accessible work since her first big hit "Stop!". Standout tracks on this album include the lead single, "Understand The Animal", "Breathe In Life", "Blood Run Cold" and "Rainbow".

As well as her solo career, she has had a successful career as a backing singer and collaborating with other artists. She has worked with David Gilmour - and Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Fish, George Harrison, Nick Cave and many others; and often appears as a member of Jools Holland's band.

Brown first gained recognition in the U.S. as backing vocalist on Pink Floyd's 1994 The Division Bell album and world tour (documented on the live album and concert video P*U*L*S*E), backing vocals on David Gilmour In Concert (2002), and achieved further prominence via her 2002 performance in the Concert For George tribute show (singing "Horse To The Water").

In 2003 she teamed up with Dave Rotheray of the British band The Beautiful South to form the "side-project", Homespun. The band have so far, released two albums on independent labels Classic Records and Musicvision.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Singles

Year Song United Kingdom Australia U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Album
1988 Stop! 52 — — Stop!
1989 Stop! (re-release) 4 4 65 Stop!
1989 Can I Get A Witness? 15 17 — Stop!
1990 With A Little Love 44 27 — April Moon
1990 Kissing Gate 23 60 — April Moon
1995 Just Good Friends 63 — — Yin (Fish album)

[edit] Trivia

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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