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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Trouble
Charles Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Since you went away
I'll always think of you
Each night and day
Someday, someday, my darlin'
I won't be troubled no mo'
Has its misery
Already had
The best of po' me
Someday, someday, my darlin'
I won't be troubled no mo'
You heard my story
I'll sing my song
'Bout you leavin' po' me
You know that's wrong
Someday, someday, my darlin'
I won't be troubled no mo'
In Charles Brown's song "Trouble Blues", he speaks about the emotions he goes through after his lover leaves him. He sings about the countless tears he has shed since she left, and how she is constantly on his mind every night and day. However, Brown remains optimistic and believes that someday the pain he feels will dissipate, and he will no longer carry the burden of his troubles.
The lyrics of the song speak to the deeper pain that comes with lost love. The pain is so intense that it consumes one's thoughts and emotions, making it difficult to move on. Brown's song is an expression of the deep pain caused by losing someone you love, and he gives a voice to those experiencing a similar heartache.
Line by Line Meaning
So many tears
I have been crying a lot
Since you went away
Ever since you left me
I'll always think of you
You are always on my mind
Each night and day
All the time
Someday, someday, my darlin'
One day, eventually
I won't be troubled no mo'
I won't have any more problems
Trouble, trouble
Problems, difficulties
Has its misery
Causes pain and suffering
Already had
I have already gone through
The best of po' me
The worst of me, as a poor, unlucky person
You heard my story
You know what happened to me
I'll sing my song
I will tell my tale
'Bout you leavin' po' me
About how you left me, a poor, sad person
You know that's wrong
What you did was not right
Someday, someday, my darlin'
One day, eventually
I won't be troubled no mo'
I won't have any more problems
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CHARLES MOSE BROWN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
murp h
Charles was and is terrific . Ray tried his best to sound like him when he started out.
TallFnJoe
This is CB's best version of this jam. Thanks for the upload.
Mika Solanti
A big US R&B hit in 1949.
F Sutter
I love the blues.
Craig McCauley
Smooth blues!
Korben Dallas
thank you so much for posting this. one love from switzerland :)
Sadie Clavos
<3
Russ Jalichandra
Classic.
Alexandru Stefanica
Thank you for the real music
J
I love this version and Sam Cooke's version