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.
Standing On the Corner
Ruth Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Standing on a corner watching all the girls go by
Brother you don't know a nicer occupation
Matter of fact, neither do I
Than standing on a corner watching all the girls
Watching all the girls, watching all the girls go by
I'm the cat that got the cream
Haven't got a girl but I can wish
So I'll take me down to Main street
And that's where I select my imaginary dish
Standing on a corner watching all the girls go by
Standing on a corner giving all the girls the eye
Brother if you've got a rich imagination
Give it a whirl, give it a try
Try standing on a corner watching all the girls
Watching all the girls, watching all the girls go by
Brother you can't go to jail for what you're thinking
Or for that woo look in your eye
Standing on the corner watching all the girls
Watching all the girls, watching all the girls go by
Ruth Brown's song "Standing On the Corner" is a playful and flirtatious tune that describes the pleasure of watching women walk by. The song opens with the singer positioned on a street corner, casually watching women pass him by. As the song progresses, he goes on to describe the benefits of this activity, claiming that there are few nicer occupations, and that he's just like any other person who enjoys watching the ladies.
The singer goes on to describe himself as the cat that got the cream, acknowledging his own delight in the situation, even though he doesn't have a current romantic partner. He goes on to say that even though he doesn't have a lady friend, he likes to use his imagination when he's watching these women, selecting an imaginary "dish" down on Main Street. In the final verse, the singer encourages listeners to try this activity themselves, acknowledging that it's completely harmless and just involves enjoying the view.
Overall, the song offers a playful and lighthearted take on the act of watching women walk by. While some may find the lyrics objectifying or offensive, the tune is ultimately just a bit of harmless fun.
Line by Line Meaning
Standing on a corner watching all the girls go by
Enjoying my time standing on the street corner and admiring all the passing women
Brother you don't know a nicer occupation
There is no better way to spend one's time than watching women walk by on the street corner
Matter of fact, neither do I
In fact, I agree with the previous statement
Than standing on a corner watching all the girls
There's nothing more enjoyable than standing on the street corner and watching women go by
Watching all the girls, watching all the girls, watching all the girls go by
Reiterating the joy of watching women passing by on the street corner
I'm the cat that got the cream
I might not have a girlfriend at the moment but I'm still satisfied and content with life
Haven't got a girl but I can dream
Although I'm currently single, I can still dream about being with someone
Haven't got a girl but I can wish
Even though I don't have a girlfriend, I can still have my desires and hopes
So I'll take me down to Main street
I'll go to the main street to find my ideal woman
And that's where I select my imaginary dish
That's where I fantasize about choosing the perfect woman for me
Standing on a corner giving all the girls the eye
Looking intently at all the passing women on the street corner
Brother if you've got a rich imagination
If you have a great imagination, you can dream up all sorts of scenarios while standing on the street corner
Give it a whirl, give it a try
Just try to imagine and see what you can come up with
Brother you can't go to jail for what you're thinking
It's okay to have thoughts and desires, and there are no real consequences for just thinking about things
Or for that woo look in your eye
There's no harm in looking a little wistful or romantic while watching women on the street corner
Watching all the girls, watching all the girls, watching all the girls go by
Once again, expressing the joy of watching women passing by on the street corner
Writer(s): Lea Holder
Contributed by Arianna P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
hevnz trash
A song about codependency.
Lollo Simeoni Lollo
.)) ..Bella Voce :)))