Oscar Brown
Encyclopedia
Oscar Brown, Jr was an American singer, songwriter, playwright, poet, civil rights
activist, and actor.
He ran for office in the Illinois
state legislature and U.S. Congress, unsuccessfully in each case.
, he was named after his father Oscar Brown, Sr.
, who was a successful attorney
and real estate broker
. His singing debut was on the radio show Secret City at age 15. Brown attended Englewood High School
in Chicago, the University of Wisconsin–Madison
, and Lincoln University (Pennsylvania)
but did not obtain a degree. He also served a stint in the U.S. Army.
recorded one of his songs, he began to focus on a career in music. His first major contribution to a recorded work was a collaboration with Max Roach
, We Insist! - Freedom Now
, which was an early record celebrating the black freedom movement in the United States. Columbia Records
signed Brown, who was already in his mid-30's and married with five children, as a solo artist. In 1960, he released his first LP, Sin and Soul, recorded from June 20 to October 23, 1960. The cover to the album included personal reviews by well-known celebrities and jazz musicians of the time, including Steve Allen
, Lorraine Hansberry
, Nat Hentoff
, Dorothy Killgallen, Max Roach
and Nina Simone
(Simone would later cover his "Work Song") The album is regarded as a 'true classic' for openly tackling the experiences of African-Americans with songs such as "Bid 'Em In" and "Afro-Blue". The album is also significant because Brown's took several popular jazz instrumentals and combined them with self-penned lyrics on songs like "Dat Dere
", "Afro-Blue" and "Work Song". This began a trend that would continue with several other major jazz vocalists. Jon Hendricks
, for example, three years later composed lyrics for the Mongo Santamaría
song "Yeh Yeh
" (later a hit for Georgie Fame
) Bob Dorough
similarly composed lyrics for Mel Tormé
's version of "Comin' Home Baby!
" and musicians Larry Williams
and Johnny "Guitar" Watson would also go on to compose lyrics for Cannonball Adderley's "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" for Marlena Shaw
. Several of the tracks from Sin and Soul were embraced by the 60's Mod movement, such as "Humdrum Blues", "Work Song" and "Watermelon Man
". Oscar has wonderful daughters and sons.Oscar "bobo" brown the third, Maggie brown singer, songwriter, actress, educator and mom of three, and Africa brown.These three out of seven children carry out his legacy in singing and acting. But sadly BoBo the instrument player was in a car crash and soon died. The two left are greatly carrying out his legacy. Performances, around town and some of Maggie's in new York and D.C. I know that he is proud of his kids and 17 grandchildren
The Sin and Soul album was followed by Between Heaven and Hell. The success of Sin and Soul meant that much more money was spent on production and Quincy Jones
and Ralph Burns
were bought in to handle the arrangements. To this day, it is the only Oscar Brown LP from his time at Columbia that has not been released on CD.
However, Brown was soon to fall down the pecking order at Columbia following a rearrangement of the management at the company. His third album was notable for the lack of any self-composed songs, and Columbia was having a hard time packaging Brown as an artist. They were unsure whether he was suited to middle of the road/easy listening nightclubs or alternatively presented as a jazz artist.
He was given much more creative freedom for his fourth album, and he was back to his creative best, composing songs such as "The Snake", which became a Northern Soul
classic when it was covered by Al Wilson
, and has featured on several adverts. Despite this return to form, and having been told by the new head of Columbia that he was high on the companies' priorities, his contract at Columbia was not renewed.
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 (in 1966 and 1969) and again addressed social issues of the time. Appearing with Brown were his wife, Jean Pace, and the Brazil
ian singer/accordionist Sivuca
. RCA released the original cast recording around 1970; it is long out of print.
and the Harry Smiths on their eponymous first album. Nina Simone
popularized Brown's lyrics to "Work Song" and "Afro Blue," as well as his song "Bid 'Em In." Brown's "Afro Blue" lyrics have since been performed by numerous contemporary jazz vocalists, including Dianne Reeves
, Dee Dee Bridgewater
, and Lizz Wright
. Vocalist Karrin Allyson
has cited Brown as a particular inspiration, and has performed his compositions on several of her albums. Brown was scheduled to contribute new lyrics to Allyson's 2006 album, Footprints, but died before the project was complete; Allyson instead recorded Brown's songs "A Tree and Me" and "But I Was Cool" as a tribute. Brown's work has also been the focus of full-length tribute albums by lesser-known jazz artists, including cabaret singer Linda Kosut and Brown's own daughter, Maggie Brown.
The book, What It Is — Poems and Opinions of Oscar Brown Jr., from Oyster Knife Publishing, included lyrics to some of his better-known songs, as well as lyrics to songs Brown never got to record.
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
activist, and actor.
He ran for office in the Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
state legislature and U.S. Congress, unsuccessfully in each case.
Early life
Born and raised on the south side of ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, he was named after his father Oscar Brown, Sr.
Oscar Brown, Sr.
Oscar Brown, Sr. was a prominent Chicago businessman, lawyer and community activist. He is also the father of singer Oscar Brown, Jr..-Biography:...
, who was a successful attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and real estate broker
Real estate broker
A real estate broker, real estate agent or realtor is a party who acts as an intermediary between sellers and buyers of real estate/real property and attempts to find sellers who wish to sell and buyers who wish to buy...
. His singing debut was on the radio show Secret City at age 15. Brown attended Englewood High School
Englewood Technical Prep Academy
Englewood Technical Prep Academy or sometimes referred to as simply Englewood High School , part of the Chicago Public School system, served the Englewood community on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois....
in Chicago, the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
, and Lincoln University (Pennsylvania)
Lincoln University (Pennsylvania)
Lincoln University is the United States' first degree-granting historically black university. It is located near the town of Oxford in southern Chester County, Pennsylvania. The university also hosts a Center for Graduate Studies in the City of Philadelphia. Lincoln University provides...
but did not obtain a degree. He also served a stint in the U.S. Army.
Music
Brown's father had intended for him to follow in his footsteps and become a practicing lawyer. While he did help his father at his practice, he ventured off into other careers, such as advertising and serving in the army in the mid-1950s. When Mahalia JacksonMahalia Jackson
Mahalia Jackson – January 27, 1972) was an African-American gospel singer. Possessing a powerful contralto voice, she was referred to as "The Queen of Gospel"...
recorded one of his songs, he began to focus on a career in music. His first major contribution to a recorded work was a collaboration with Max Roach
Max Roach
Maxwell Lemuel "Max" Roach was an American jazz percussionist, drummer, and composer.A pioneer of bebop, Roach went on to work in many other styles of music, and is generally considered alongside the most important drummers in history...
, We Insist! - Freedom Now
We Insist! - Freedom Now
We Insist! Max Roach's Freedom Now Suite is a 1960 jazz album containing a suite which Max Roach and lyricist Oscar Brown had begun to develop in 1959 with a view to its performance in 1963 on the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation. The cover references the sit-in movement of the Civil...
, which was an early record celebrating the black freedom movement in the United States. Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
signed Brown, who was already in his mid-30's and married with five children, as a solo artist. In 1960, he released his first LP, Sin and Soul, recorded from June 20 to October 23, 1960. The cover to the album included personal reviews by well-known celebrities and jazz musicians of the time, including Steve Allen
Steve Allen
Steve Allen may refer to:*Steve Allen , American musician, comedian, and writer*Steve Allen , presenter on the London-based talk radio station LBC 97.3...
, Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry was an African American playwright and author of political speeches, letters, and essays...
, Nat Hentoff
Nat Hentoff
Nathan Irving "Nat" Hentoff is an American historian, novelist, jazz and country music critic, and syndicated columnist for United Media and writes regularly on jazz and country music for The Wall Street Journal....
, Dorothy Killgallen, Max Roach
Max Roach
Maxwell Lemuel "Max" Roach was an American jazz percussionist, drummer, and composer.A pioneer of bebop, Roach went on to work in many other styles of music, and is generally considered alongside the most important drummers in history...
and Nina Simone
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...
(Simone would later cover his "Work Song") The album is regarded as a 'true classic' for openly tackling the experiences of African-Americans with songs such as "Bid 'Em In" and "Afro-Blue". The album is also significant because Brown's took several popular jazz instrumentals and combined them with self-penned lyrics on songs like "Dat Dere
Dat Dere
"Dat Dere" is a jazz song with music by Bobby Timmons and lyrics by Oscar Brown, Jr.- Creation :Timmons composed the music in succession with the songs "Dis Here" and "Which Were?". It was first recorded in 1960 by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers on the album "The Big Beat" while Timmons was the...
", "Afro-Blue" and "Work Song". This began a trend that would continue with several other major jazz vocalists. Jon Hendricks
Jon Hendricks
Jon Hendricks is an American jazz lyricist and singer. He is considered one of the originators of vocalese, which adds lyrics to existing instrumental songs and replaces many instruments with vocalists...
, for example, three years later composed lyrics for the Mongo Santamaría
Mongo Santamaría
Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez was an Afro-Cuban Latin jazz percussionist. He is most famous for being the composer of the jazz standard "Afro Blue," recorded by John Coltrane among others. In 1950 he moved to New York where he played with Perez Prado, Tito Puente, Cal Tjader, Fania All...
song "Yeh Yeh
Yeh Yeh
"Yeh Yeh" is a Latin soul tune that was written as an instrumental by Rodgers Grant and Pat Patrick and first recorded by Mongo Santamaría on his 1963 album Watermelon Man . Lyrics were written for it shortly thereafter by Jon Hendricks of the vocal group Lambert, Hendricks & Ross. This version of...
" (later a hit for Georgie Fame
Georgie Fame
Georgie Fame is a British rhythm and blues and jazz singer and keyboard player. The one-time rock and roll tour musician, who had a string of 1960s hits, is still a popular performer, often working with contemporaries such as Van Morrison and Bill Wyman.-Early life:Fame took piano lessons from the...
) Bob Dorough
Bob Dorough
Bob Dorough is an American bebop and cool jazz pianist, composer and vocalese singer.He worked with Miles Davis and Allen Ginsberg, and his adventurous style was an influence on Mose Allison, among other singers...
similarly composed lyrics for Mel Tormé
Mel Tormé
Melvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
's version of "Comin' Home Baby!
Comin' Home Baby!
Comin' Home Baby! is a 1962 album by the American jazz singer Mel Tormé. The title track was a Top 40 hit in the United States.- Track listing :# "Comin' Home Baby!" – 2:41...
" and musicians Larry Williams
Larry Williams
Larry Williams was an American rhythm and blues and rock and roll singer, songwriter, producer, and pianist from New Orleans, Louisiana...
and Johnny "Guitar" Watson would also go on to compose lyrics for Cannonball Adderley's "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" for Marlena Shaw
Marlena Shaw
Marlena Shaw is an American singer. Shaw began her singing career in the 1960s and is still singing today. Her music has often been sampled in hip hop music, and used in television commercials.-Biography:She was first introduced to music by her uncle Jimmy Burgess, a jazz trumpet player...
. Several of the tracks from Sin and Soul were embraced by the 60's Mod movement, such as "Humdrum Blues", "Work Song" and "Watermelon Man
Watermelon Man
Watermelon Man may refer to:*"Watermelon Man" , a composition written by Herbie Hancock*Watermelon Man , a 1970 film directed by Melvin Van Peebles and starring Godfrey Cambridge...
". Oscar has wonderful daughters and sons.Oscar "bobo" brown the third, Maggie brown singer, songwriter, actress, educator and mom of three, and Africa brown.These three out of seven children carry out his legacy in singing and acting. But sadly BoBo the instrument player was in a car crash and soon died. The two left are greatly carrying out his legacy. Performances, around town and some of Maggie's in new York and D.C. I know that he is proud of his kids and 17 grandchildren
The Sin and Soul album was followed by Between Heaven and Hell. The success of Sin and Soul meant that much more money was spent on production and Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
and Ralph Burns
Ralph Burns
Ralph Burns was an American songwriter, bandleader, composer, conductor, arranger and bebop pianist.-Early life:...
were bought in to handle the arrangements. To this day, it is the only Oscar Brown LP from his time at Columbia that has not been released on CD.
However, Brown was soon to fall down the pecking order at Columbia following a rearrangement of the management at the company. His third album was notable for the lack of any self-composed songs, and Columbia was having a hard time packaging Brown as an artist. They were unsure whether he was suited to middle of the road/easy listening nightclubs or alternatively presented as a jazz artist.
He was given much more creative freedom for his fourth album, and he was back to his creative best, composing songs such as "The Snake", which became a Northern Soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
classic when it was covered by Al Wilson
Al Wilson (singer)
Al Wilson was an American soul singer best known for the million-selling #1 hit, "Show and Tell". He is also remembered for his Northern soul anthem, "The Snake".-Career:...
, and has featured on several adverts. Despite this return to form, and having been told by the new head of Columbia that he was high on the companies' priorities, his contract at Columbia was not renewed.
Humanitarian work
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 GarrowayDave Garroway
David Cunningham "Dave" Garroway was the founding host of NBC's Today from 1952 to 1961. His easygoing, relaxed, and relaxing style belied a battle with depression that may have contributed to the end of his days as a leading television personality—and, eventually, his life...
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
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
, 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
Desegregation
Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups usually referring to races. This is most commonly used in reference to the United States. Desegregation was long a focus of the American Civil Rights Movement, both before and after the United States Supreme Court's decision in...
. The character Mr. Kicks is an emissary of Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
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 (in 1966 and 1969) and again addressed social issues of the time. Appearing with Brown were his wife, Jean Pace, and the Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian singer/accordionist Sivuca
Sivuca
Severino Dias de Oliveirawas a Brazilian accordionist and guitarist.In addition to in his home state of Paraíba, in Recife, and in Rio de Janeiro,...
. RCA released the original cast recording around 1970; it is long out of print.
Legacy
Brown's lyrics and original compositions have been performed by a variety of other artists. "Somebody Buy Me a Drink", a track from Sin and Soul, was covered by David JohansenDavid Johansen
David Roger Johansen is an American rock, protopunk, blues, and pop singer, as well as a songwriter and actor. He is best known as a member of the seminal protopunk band The New York Dolls and also achieved commercial success under the pseudonym Buster Poindexter.-Early life:Johansen was born in...
and the Harry Smiths on their eponymous first album. Nina Simone
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...
popularized Brown's lyrics to "Work Song" and "Afro Blue," as well as his song "Bid 'Em In." Brown's "Afro Blue" lyrics have since been performed by numerous contemporary jazz vocalists, including Dianne Reeves
Dianne Reeves
Dianne Reeves is an American jazz singer. She currently lives in Denver, Colorado.-Early life:Reeves was born in Detroit, Michigan to a very musical family. Her father, who died when she was two years old, was also a singer. Her mother, Vada Swanson, played trumpet. A cousin, George Duke, is a...
, Dee Dee Bridgewater
Dee Dee Bridgewater
Dee Dee Bridgewater is an American Jazz singer. She is a three-time Grammy Award winning singer-songwriter, as well as a Tony Award - winning stage actress and host of National Public Radio's syndicated radio show JazzSet with Dee Dee Bridgewater...
, and Lizz Wright
Lizz Wright
Lizz Wright is an American jazz/R&B singer and composer.Wright was born in the small town of Hahira in the US state of Georgia; one of three children and the daughter of a minister and the musical director of their Church. She started singing gospel music and playing piano in church as a child,...
. Vocalist Karrin Allyson
Karrin Allyson
Karrin Allyson is an American jazz vocalist. She has been nominated for three Grammy Awards, and has received positive reviews from several prominent sources, including The New York Times, which has called her a "singer with a feline touch and impeccable intonation."-Career:Allyson grew up in...
has cited Brown as a particular inspiration, and has performed his compositions on several of her albums. Brown was scheduled to contribute new lyrics to Allyson's 2006 album, Footprints, but died before the project was complete; Allyson instead recorded Brown's songs "A Tree and Me" and "But I Was Cool" as a tribute. Brown's work has also been the focus of full-length tribute albums by lesser-known jazz artists, including cabaret singer Linda Kosut and Brown's own daughter, Maggie Brown.
Publications
Brown wrote at least 1,000 songs (only 125 have been published), twelve albums, and over a dozen musical plays.The book, What It Is — Poems and Opinions of Oscar Brown Jr., from Oyster Knife Publishing, included lyrics to some of his better-known songs, as well as lyrics to songs Brown never got to record.
Albums
- Max Roach: Freedom Now SuiteWe Insist! - Freedom NowWe Insist! Max Roach's Freedom Now Suite is a 1960 jazz album containing a suite which Max Roach and lyricist Oscar Brown had begun to develop in 1959 with a view to its performance in 1963 on the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation. The cover references the sit-in movement of the Civil...
(c. 1959) - lyricist for songs performed by Abbey LincolnAbbey LincolnAnna Marie Wooldridge , better known by her stage name Abbey Lincoln, was a jazz vocalist, songwriter, and actress. Lincoln was unusual in that she wrote and performed her own compositions, expanding the expectations of jazz audiences.-Biography:Born in Chicago, Illinois, she was one of many... - 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 WashingtonMr. Oscar Brown, Jr. Goes to WashingtonMr. Oscar Brown, Jr. Goes to Washington is a 1965 live album by vocalist Oscar Brown, Jr. recorded at The Cellar Door in Washington D.C. - Track listing :# "One Life" – 3:14# "Beautiful Girl" – 3:15# "Maxine" – 2:50# "Maggie" – 3:01...
(1965) [live nightclub recording] - available on CD - Finding A New Friend (w/Luiz Henrique) (1966) - out of print LP
- Joy (1970) - out of print LP
- Movin' On (1972) - available on CD
- Fresh (1973) - previously available on CD, out of print
- Brother Where Are You (mid-1970s) - as above for availability
- Then & Now (1995) - released on CD
- Live Every Minute (1998) (backed by German NDR Big Band) - available on import CD
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
- Great Nitty Gritty
Songs
- "The Snake"
- "Work Song" (lyrics to Nat AdderleyNat AdderleyNathaniel Adderley was an American jazz cornet and trumpet player who played in the hard bop and soul jazz genres. He was the brother of saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley....
's music) - "All BluesAll Blues"All Blues" is a jazz composition by Miles Davis first appearing on the influential 1959 album Kind of Blue.It is a 12 bar blues in 6/4; the chord sequence is that of a basic blues and made up entirely of 7th chords, with a ♭VI in the turnaround instead of just the usual V chord...
" (lyrics to Miles DavisMiles DavisMiles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
' music) - "Dat DereDat Dere"Dat Dere" is a jazz song with music by Bobby Timmons and lyrics by Oscar Brown, Jr.- Creation :Timmons composed the music in succession with the songs "Dis Here" and "Which Were?". It was first recorded in 1960 by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers on the album "The Big Beat" while Timmons was the...
" (lyrics to Bobby TimmonsBobby TimmonsRobert Henry "Bobby" Timmons was an African American jazz pianist and composer.He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and is best known for his role as sideman in Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and the composition of "Moanin'", "Dat Dere", and "This Here", each of which are typical of his...
' music) - "Afro BlueAfro Blue"Afro Blues" is a jazz standard composed by Mongo Santamaría, perhaps best known in its arrangement by John Coltrane.Coltrane's recordings of the piece have several features in common with his versions of "My Favorite Things", including a pulsating 3/4 jazz waltz rhythm, and a simple, almost...
" (lyrics to Mongo SantamaríaMongo SantamaríaRamón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez was an Afro-Cuban Latin jazz percussionist. He is most famous for being the composer of the jazz standard "Afro Blue," recorded by John Coltrane among others. In 1950 he moved to New York where he played with Perez Prado, Tito Puente, Cal Tjader, Fania All...
'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"
Media appearances
- Negro Newsfront (1940s), radio show
- The Tonight ShowThe Tonight ShowThe Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
with Steve AllenSteve AllenSteve Allen may refer to:*Steve Allen , American musician, comedian, and writer*Steve Allen , presenter on the London-based talk radio station LBC 97.3...
(c. 1960) - The Today Show with Dave GarrowayDave GarrowayDavid Cunningham "Dave" Garroway was the founding host of NBC's Today from 1952 to 1961. His easygoing, relaxed, and relaxing style belied a battle with depression that may have contributed to the end of his days as a leading television personality—and, eventually, his life...
(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]