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.
Papa Daddy
Ruth Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I don't mind if it's all night, Daddy
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy right or wrong
I'm gonna need you for a long time, Daddy
Gotta love me, Daddy. From now on.
That's whacha got to do.
When you thrill me like you thrill me
with a toss that always fills me with love.
Sho fine
In the morning when the clock strikes four.
You're the lover that I'm going to depend on
to love me Daddy, never let me go.
That's all I ask of you.
I'll try to show you
how I need your two arms to hold me,
when I'm lonely.
So, tell me Daddy
are you going to thrill your baby
like I want you to.
Love me Daddy for a long, long time
When you hug me and you kiss me
give me love that I'll be missing
I'll feel so good.
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy hold me tight
Want to feel your tender arms all around me.
Daddy, Daddy while the moon is bright.
Sweet, gently, tight.
Hold me in the morning
Hold me every night
Thrill me Daddy, thrill me
Till I scream with all my might
Oooooooooh, long, long time
When you thrill me like you thrill me
with a touch that always fills me
with love so fine
Daddy, Daddy you're a real consternation
Daddy, Daddy you're a real sensation
Daddy, Daddy we're a great combination
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
Ruth Brown's song "Papa Daddy" is a classic R&B tune about a woman who deeply craves the love and attention of her partner. The song is upbeat and catchy, but the lyrics reveal a woman's desire to be loved and cared for by her partner, who she refers to as "Papa Daddy." Throughout the song, the singer repeatedly calls out for her partner's love and affection, expressing her willingness to be with him all night long and her need for his love and support in the future.
The lyrics are a poignant reflection on the universal human need for love and companionship, particularly in the context of romantic relationships. They express the intense desire to be loved unconditionally, to feel secure in a relationship, and to never be alone. The song deftly captures the complexity and depth of human emotions, and the ways in which love can be simultaneously exhilarating and nerve-wracking.
Line by Line Meaning
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy love me strong
Father, my beloved, my life sustainer, I need your love and affection to be steady and consistent
I don't mind if it's all night, Daddy
I am willing to stay up with you all night, Father, as long as you love me
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy right or wrong
Father, my hero, no matter what happens, I will always need you to be by my side
I'm gonna need you for a long time, Daddy
I will never stop needing you, Father, for as long as I am alive
Gotta love me, Daddy. From now on.
You have to love me without fail, Father, starting from this moment onwards
That's whacha got to do.
It is what you must do, Father
When you thrill me like you thrill me
When you excite and delight me, Father
with a toss that always fills me with love.
With a gesture that fills my heart with love, Father
Sho fine
It feels amazing, Father
In the morning when the clock strikes four.
At dawn when the clock signals 4 AM
You're the lover that I'm going to depend on to love me Daddy, never let me go.
You are the man I will rely on to love me, cherish me, and never leave me, Father
That's all I ask of you.
That is the only thing I need from you, Father
I'll try to show you
I will do my utmost to demonstrate to you, Father
how I need your two arms to hold me, when I'm lonely.
How desperately I need to be held by your two strong arms, especially when I feel lonely, Father
So, tell me Daddy are you going to thrill your baby like I want you to.
Father, do you promise to excite and pleasure me the way I desire?
Love me Daddy for a long, long time
Father, love me for an extended period, never stopping
When you hug me and you kiss me
When you embrace me and place a kiss on my lips, Father
give me love that I'll be missing
Give me the love that I will yearn for, Father
I'll feel so good.
I will experience a great sense of happiness and satisfaction, Father
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy hold me tight
My dearest Father, hold me firmly and securely
Want to feel your tender arms all around me.
I desire to experience your affectionate embrace, Father
Daddy, Daddy while the moon is bright.
Father, while the moon is luminous and bright
Sweet, gently, tight.
Soft, gentle, and snug, Father
Hold me in the morning
Embrace me at dawn, Father
Hold me every night
Embrace me every night, Father
Thrill me Daddy, thrill me
Excite and delight me, Father
Till I scream with all my might
Until I cry out with all my strength and energy, Father
Oooooooooh, long, long time
For a prolonged amount of time, Father
Daddy, Daddy you're a real consternation
Father, you are a genuine source of confusion and bewilderment
Daddy, Daddy you're a real sensation
Father, you are an extraordinary spectacle
Daddy, Daddy we're a great combination
Father, we make an outstanding team
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
My dear Father, my beloved, my life sustainer
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
My dear Father, my beloved, my life sustainer
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
My dear Father, my beloved, my life sustainer
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
My dear Father, my beloved, my life sustainer
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
My dear Father, my beloved, my life sustainer
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy-doo
My dear Father, my beloved, my life sustainer
Contributed by Jonathan N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Barry Hayes
Happy to here this..My parents few records they had.
Eddie Jones
Used to dance to this morning song.