Born Ruth Alston Weston on 30th January 1928 in Portsmouth, Virginia, she attended I. C. Norcom High School, a historically black high school. Brown's father was a dockhand who directed the local church choir, but the young Ruth showed more of an interest in singing at USO shows and nightclubs. She was inspired by Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday and Dinah Washington. In 1945, Brown ran away from her home in Portsmouth along with a trumpeter, Jimmy Brown, whom she soon married, to sing in bars and clubs. She then spent a month with Lucky Millinder's orchestra, but was fired after she brought drinks to the band for free, and was left stranded in Washington, D.C.
Blanche Calloway, Cab Calloway's sister, also a bandleader, arranged a gig for Brown at a Washington nightclub called Crystal Caverns and soon became her manager. Willis Conover, a Voice of America disc jockey, caught her act and recommended her to Atlantic Records bosses, Ahmet Ertegün and Herb Abramson. Brown was unable to audition as planned though, because of a serious car accident that resulted in a nine-month hospital stay. In 1948, however, Ertegün and Abramson drove to Washington from New York City to hear her sing in the club. Although her repertoire was mostly popular ballads, Ertegün convinced her to switch to rhythm and blues. His productions for her, however, retained her pop style, with clean, fresh arrangements and the singing spot on the beat with little of the usual blues singer's embroidery.
In her first audition, in 1949, she sang "So Long", which became a hit. This was followed by "Teardrops from My Eyes" in 1950; written by Rudy Toombs, it was the first upbeat major hit for Ruth Brown, establishing her as an important figure in R&B. Recorded for Atlantic Records in New York City in September 1950, and released in October, it was on Billboard's List of number-one R&B hits (United States) for eleven weeks. The huge hit earned her the nickname "Miss Rhythm", and within a few months Ruth Brown became the acknowledged queen of R&B.
She followed up this hit with "I'll Wait for You" (1951), "I Know" (1951), "5-10-15 Hours" (1953), "(Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean" (1953), "Oh What a Dream" (1954), "Mambo Baby" (1954), and "Don't Deceive Me" (1960). She also became known as "Little Miss Rhythm" and "the girl with the teardrop in her voice". In all, she was on the R&B charts for 149 weeks from 1949 to 1955, with sixteen top-ten blues records including five number ones, and became Atlantic's most popular artist, earning Atlantic records the proper name of "The House that Ruth Built".
During the 1960s, Brown faded from public view to become a housewife and mother, and only returned to music in 1975 at the urging of Redd Foxx, followed by a series of comic acting gigs, including roles in the sitcom Hello, Larry and the John Waters film Hairspray as local DJ Motormouth Maybelle, as well as Broadway appearances in Amen Corner and Black and Blue, which earned her a Tony Award for her performance and a Grammy award for her album Blues on Broadway, featuring hits from the show.
Brown's fight for musicians' rights and royalties in 1987 led to the founding of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. She was inducted as a Pioneer Award recipient in its first year, 1989. In 1993, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as "The Queen Mother of the Blues".
She has become an iconic symbol to many black women for later generations, where she is also a favourite artist and inspiration for later blues artists such as Bonnie Raitt. Brown recorded and sang along with fellow rhythm and blues performer Charles Brown, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and toured with Raitt on Raitt's tour in the late 1990s, "Road Tested". Her 1995 autobiography, Miss Rhythm, won the Gleason Award for music journalism.
Brown died in a Las Vegas-area hospital on 17th November 2006, from complications following a heart attack and stroke she suffered after surgery in October 2006. A memorial concert for her was held on 22nd January 2007 at the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, New York.
In another world
Ruth Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Destination anywhere this road decides to go
Underneath the desert sky
I find a place to hide and rest my weary bones
This underpass will shade the heat
And as my mind drifts off to sleep
There you are with your hair all down
What a beautiful sight, in the moonlight
The way you're lookin' at me with your lovin' eyes
You let me know that for all my life
You will always be my only girl
But that's another place in time, back when you were mine
In another world
A car stops way up ahead
I climb inside, her hair is red, I thank her for the ride
She talks the miles away
I nod and smile and try to say anything to be polite
But as the darkness ends the day
Another voice whispers my name
There you are with your hair all down
And your feet are bare, in your cotton gown
What a beautiful sight, in the moonlight
The way you're lookin' at me with your lovin' eyes
You let me know that for all my life
You will always be my only girl
But that's another place in time, back when you were mine
In another world
There you are with your hair all down
And your feet are bare, in your cotton gown
What a beautiful sight, in the moonlight
The way you're lookin' at me with your lovin' eyes
You let me know that for all my life
You will always be my only girl
But that's another place in time, back when you were mine
In another world
In another world
In another world
Ruth Brown's song In Another World tells the story of a traveler who is wandering in the desert and takes refuge under an underpass. As the traveler falls asleep, they dream about a past lover who appears before them in their dream. The lover is described as having hair down, bare feet and wearing a cotton gown, appearing as a beautiful sight under the moonlight. They lock eyes, reminding the traveler that the lover is still with them in spirit, though in another world.
The second verse of the song begins with the traveler getting a ride in a car from a woman with red hair. As they talk the miles away, the traveler hears the voice of their past lover again, once again appearing in their dream. The dream lover is portrayed with the same vivid, sensual imagery as before, with their hair down, bare feet, and a cotton gown. They let the traveler know that they will always be their only girl, but that it's another place and time, in another world.
The lyrics of In Another World beautifully capture the longing and nostalgia that often comes with heartbreak and separation. The traveler's dream serves as a reminder that though their lover is no longer physically present in their life, they will always hold a special place in their heart. Moreover, the vivid descriptions of the desert and the dream lover create a romantic and otherworldly mood that adds an extra layer of emotional resonance to the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Sun stuck high in the air
The sun is shining directly overhead and there is no relief from its heat.
Destination anywhere this road decides to go
I am traveling aimlessly down a road with no particular destination in mind.
Underneath the desert sky
I am in the middle of the desert with the vast sky above me.
I find a place to hide and rest my weary bones
I have found a spot to take refuge and relax my tired body.
This underpass will shade the heat
The underpass provides shelter from the scorching sun.
And as my mind drifts off to sleep
As I begin to doze off, my thoughts start to wander.
There you are with your hair all down
In my dream, I see you with your hair flowing freely and loosely.
And your feet are bare, in your cotton gown
You are dressed casually, with bare feet and wearing a simple cotton dress.
What a beautiful sight, in the moonlight
You look stunning in the moon's glow, casting a beautiful sight.
The way you're lookin' at me with your lovin' eyes
You gaze at me with your eyes full of love and adoration.
You let me know that for all my life
Through your actions and words, you assure me that you will always be by my side.
You will always be my only girl
In my heart, you will forever be my beloved.
But that's another place in time, back when you were mine
However, that is a different time when we were together.
In another world
It is a different world and time, separate from the present reality.
A car stops way up ahead
A vehicle arrives at a distance ahead of me.
I climb inside, her hair is red, I thank her for the ride
I get inside the car, the driver has red hair and I express my gratitude for the ride.
She talks the miles away
The driver keeps me occupied by talking throughout the journey.
I nod and smile and try to say anything to be polite
I respond with nods and smiles and try to engage in conversation to show politeness.
But as the darkness ends the day
As the day turns into night, it brings with it a sense of darkness.
Another voice whispers my name
Suddenly, another voice calls out my name, interrupting my thoughts and dreams.
In another world
Once again, my mind takes me to another world of dreams and memories.
In another world
I am lost in thoughts and dreams of a different world.
In another world
A world that only exists in my mind and memories.
Writer(s): GERALD GOFFIN, CONRAD LOZANO, LOUIS FRAUSTO PEREZ, CAESAR ROSAS, STEVEN MARC BERLIN, DAVID KENT HIDALGO
Contributed by Mateo N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.