Charles Brown (September 13, 1922 – January 21, 1999), born in Texas City, … Read Full Bio ↴Charles Brown (September 13, 1922 – January 21, 1999), born in Texas City, Texas was an American blues singer and pianist whose soft-toned, slow-paced blues-club style influenced the development of blues performance during the 1940s and 1950s. He had several hit recordings, including "Driftin' Blues" and "Merry Christmas Baby".

In the late 1940s a rising demand for blues was driven by an increasing white teenage audience in the South which quickly spread north and west. Blues shouters got the attention, but also greatly influential was what writer Charles Keil dubbs "the postwar Texas clean-up movement in blues" led by stylists such as T-Bone Walker, Amos Milburn and Charles Brown. Their singing was lighter, more relaxed and they worked with bands and combos that had saxophone sections and used arrangements.

As a child Brown demonstrated his love of music and took classical piano lessons. Early on, Brown moved out to Los Angeles, where the great influx of blacks created an integrated nightclub scene in which black performers tended to minimize the rougher blues elements of their style. The blues club style of a light rhythm bass and right-hand tinkling of the piano and smooth vocals became popular, epitomized by the jazz piano of Nat King Cole. When Cole left Los Angeles to perform nationally, his place was taken by Johnny Moore's Three Blazers, featuring Charles Brown's gentle piano and vocals.

Brown signed with Aladdin Records and his 1945 recording on that label of the bestseller "Driftin' Blues" with a small combo was a typical club blues song. The single was on the R&B charts for six months, putting Brown at the forefront of a musical evolution that changed American musical performance. His style dominated the influential Southern California club scene on Central Avenue during that period and he influenced such performers as Floyd Dixon, Cecil Gant, Ivory Joe Hunter, Percy Mayfield, Johnny Ace and Ray Charles.

"Driftin'" was the first of several hits Brown subsequently released "Get Yourself Another Fool", "Black Night", "Hard Times" and "Trouble Blues", all major hits in the early 1950s on such labels as Modern Records as well as Alladin. He was unable to compete with the burgeoning rock and roll sound, though he maintained a small and devoted audience.

Brown's approach was too mellow to survive the transition to rock's harsher rhythms, and he faded from the national limelight. His Please Come Home for Christmas, a hit in 1960 on the King Records remained seasonally popular. During the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, he occasionally recorded and tried to regain some prominence. This continued until the 1980s, when Bonnie Raitt helped usher in a Charles Brown comeback tour.

He began a recording and performing career again, under the musical direction of guitarist Danny Caron, to greater success than he had achieved since the 1950s. Several records received Grammy Award nominations.

He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and received both the National Endowment for the Arts' National Heritage Fellowship and the W. C. Handy Award.

Brown died in 1999 in Oakland, California.

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All My Life
Charles Brown Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Oh my life
I've been waiting for you
My wonderful one
I begun giving all my love

Oh my love
I've been saving for you
My life is sublime not the lime

Given all my love

You seem so lovely
So for a bubbly, almost affair to look
But I adore you, I place before you
Heart like an open book

Oh my life
Hold me close to your heart
Or else above hold my love
Darling all my love

Oh my life
Hold me close to your heart

Or else above hold my love
Darling all my, all my life

Overall Meaning

In Charles Brown's song "All My Life," the singer is pouring out his heart to his lover. He has been waiting for this person all his life, and he is excited to finally have found them. He is describing how he has given all his love to this person, and how he has saved himself for them. The opening lines of the song are "Oh my life, I've been waiting for you, my wonderful one. I begun giving all my love." These lyrics convey the singer's sense of joy and excitement at finally finding the person he has been waiting for.

The singer goes on to describe how his love is sublime and how he adores his lover. He recognizes that this person may seem "bubbly" or flighty, but he is fully committed to them. He declares that his heart is an open book, and that he is laying all his emotions out for his lover to see. The chorus of the song repeats the singer's longing for his lover's affection. He pleads with them to either hold him close to their heart or hold his love above all else.

Overall, "All My Life" is a heartfelt love song that speaks to the deep emotional connections people can form with their partners. The lyrics are simple yet powerful, and the melody is soulful and romantic.

Line by Line Meaning

Oh my life
Throughout my existence

I've been waiting for you
I have been eagerly anticipating your arrival

My wonderful one
My incredible companion

I begun giving all my love
I started to offer all of my affection

Oh my love
My beloved

I've been saving for you
I have been reserving myself for you

My life is sublime not the lime
My life is remarkable, not sour

Given all my love
I have given all of my affection

You seem so lovely
You appear to be very delightful

So for a bubbly, almost affair to look
So there's a chance for a lively and intriguing romance

But I adore you, I place before you
But I love and cherish you, I offer myself to you