RIP: OSCAR BROWN, JR.

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Singer, songwriter Oscar Brown Jr. dies

The Associated Press
Published May 29, 2005, 8:13 PM CDT

Singer, songwriter and playwright Oscar Brown Jr. died Sunday in Chicago after a brief illness, his family said. He was 78.

Brown was hospitalized in mid-April following emergency surgery to stop the spread of an infection in his lower spine. Before the surgery, he had complained of severe pain and suffered paralysis to both of his legs.

He had been released but was readmitted about two-and-a-half weeks ago and died at St. Joseph Hospital from complications of the illness, said his niece, Lauren Hudson.

"Although we will miss him deeply, he has left a wealth of works that will continue to touch the world," his daughter, Maggie Brown, said in a statement.

Brown is known for his compositions "The Snake," "Signifyin' Monkey" and his lyrics for Miles Davis' "All Blues." Early in his career, Brown shared the bill with jazz greats such as Dizzy Gillespie and John Coltrane.

Brown, who was active in the civil rights movement in the 1960s, also ran and lost twice for political office -- first for the Illinois legislature and later for a seat in the U.S. Congress, according to his Web site.

Along with his wife, Jean Pace Brown, he is survived by one son, four daughters and grandchildren.

Funeral services are pending, Hudson said.

― Stormy Davis (diamond), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:15 (twenty years ago)

oh man. what a talent he was.

― hey there fuckface-ah! (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:19 (twenty years ago)

Bummer. He was awesome.

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drc700/c719/c71998n0xv0.jpg

Sin and Soul is one of my favorite records of all-time.

― Stormy Davis (diamond), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:19 (twenty years ago)

Good interview/article with him in an old issue of Roctober magazine here.

― Stormy Davis (diamond), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:21 (twenty years ago)

i didn't know he ran for congress!

― j blount (papa la bas), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:22 (twenty years ago)

But finally, when my first son was born, I wrote a lullaby called "Brown Baby" and I liked that so much that I tried to get it to Harry Belafonte and I began to write more songs. I really started writin' songs just to keep from goin' crazy in the Army.
JAMES: So Harry Belafonte recorded "Brown Baby?"

OSCAR: No, no, no, Harry Belafonte didn't do shit.

― hey there fuckface-ah! (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:26 (twenty years ago)

whoa

OSCAR: So, the way I got in with Vee Jay was simply because I knew Vivian and Jimmy, and I was tryin' to break into the music business and there they were. I even tried to form my own record company, Creation Records.

― hey there fuckface-ah! (Jody Beth Rosen), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:27 (twenty years ago)

he was cool

― mullygrubbr (bulbs), Monday, 30 May 2005 03:28 (twenty years ago)

man, a few weeks ago the jazz guy at the record store told me to check him out and i've been putting it off, so i guess now is a good enough time to pick something up. also, i trust the opinions of the people on this thread

― [that bastard] jaxon (jaxon), Monday, 30 May 2005 04:15 (twenty years ago)

so search & destroy

― [that bastard] jaxon (jaxon), Monday, 30 May 2005 04:15 (twenty years ago)

...collaborating with Max Roach on the "Freedom Now Suite."

oh, man, i love this album

― [that bastard] jaxon (jaxon), Monday, 30 May 2005 04:18 (twenty years ago)

RIP Oscar: A real statesman, forward thinker and an amazing musician to boot.
SEARCH: Sin and Soul, without question.

― Forksclovetofu (Forksclovetofu), Monday, 30 May 2005 04:30 (twenty years ago)

my mom has a bunch of obj lps, bless her

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Monday, 30 May 2005 04:40 (twenty years ago)

Full disclosure: I am James Porter, the person who interviewed Oscar Brown, Jr. for Roctober magazine in 1996. As I write this, it is 5:09 AM in Chicago, I am just now finding out about Oscar's death, and even though I knew he was ailing, reading the news shocked the hell out of me.

Oscar was one of the warmest people I ever had the pleasure of meeting. The bulk of that interview took place on a Saturday afternoon in Oscar's apartment, and we must have rapped for well over an hour. If you've seen the story, you'll know he told some shocking truths; the man seemingly had nothing to hide, and hardly any regrets. On top of that, he actually thanked me for asking about obscure areas of his career; he was tired of talking about the same things, and our interview opened up new areas.

Fast forward to this year...Oscar did a one-off night at the Hideout, a Chicago alt-rock club, and sounded great, although his illness was obviously starting to take a toll. He was doing two shows that evening, and I wanted to visit between shows, just to say, like the awestruck fan I was - "hey, remember me?" It wasn't to be; he bolted straight for the dressing room, and it didn't look like he'd be hanging out unless he had to, so I reluctantly left. And now he's gone for good. Time to stop and think...

― Rev. Hoodoo (Rev. Hoodoo), Monday, 30 May 2005 09:21 (twenty years ago)

Here's a longer, more detailed obit:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/31/arts/music/31brown.html

― Rickey Wright (Rrrickey), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 19:23 (twenty years ago)

Though James' Roctober piece covers a lot (all?) of the same ground.

― Rickey Wright (Rrrickey), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 19:46 (twenty years ago)

James, if you were to cut and paste that piece here, I sure wouldn't be mad.

― Forksclovetofu (Forksclovetofu), Thursday, 2 June 2005 07:20 (twenty years ago)

ten years pass...

Sin and Soul is one of my favorite records of all-time.
― Stormy Davis (diamond), Sunday, May 29, 2005 11:19 PM (10 years ago)

I am only listening to this now for the first time. What a phenomenal record!

― Johnny Fever, Sunday, 19 July 2015 20:33 (nine years ago)

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