Friday, November 17, 2006
Gone Rockin'
Most people my age probably only knew her as Hairspray's DJ-mama Motormouth Maybelle if they knew her at all, even though she shaped so much of where pop music has come in the last 50 years. Virginia-born and 'discovered' in DC, she was not only an amazing talent, but ended up as a (if not the) driving force behind royalty reform in the record industry.Ruth Brown died today, after a stroke and heart attack. If you don't know her, I hereby command you to go have a listen. If "This Little Girl's Gone Rockin'" doesn't get you out of your chair to dance, and if "So Long" doesn't give you chills, you might not have a soul.
So long, Miss Rhythm.
Labels: icon, legend, mourning, music, R+B, rock+roll, Ruth Brown, soul
