Ruth Brown (1928–2006) was a U.S. rhythm and blues singer and actress, note… Read Full Bio ↴Ruth Brown (1928–2006) was a U.S. rhythm and blues singer and actress, noted for bringing a popular music style to rhythm and blues in a series of hit songs for fledgling Atlantic Records in the 1950s, such as "So Long", "Teardrops from My Eyes", and "(Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean".

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.

Touch Me in the Morning
Ruth Brown Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Touch me in the morning
Then just walk away
We don't have tomorrow
But we had yesterday

(Hey!)
Wasn't it me who said that
Nothing good's gonna last forever?

And wasn't it me who said
Let's just be glad for the time together?
It must've been hard to tell me
That you've given all you had to give
I can understand you're feeling that way
Everybody's got their life to live

Well, I can say goodbye in the cold morning light
But I can't watch love die in the warmth of the night
If I've got to be strong
Don't you know I need to have tonight when you're gone?
'Till you go I need to lie here and think about
The last time that you'll touch me in the morning
Then just close the door
Leave me as you found me, empty like before

(Hey!)
Wasn't it yesterday
We used to laugh at the wind behind us?
Didn't we run away and hope
That time wouldn't try to find us (Didn't we run)
Didn't we take each other
To a place where no one's ever been?
Yeah, I really need you near me tonight
'Cause you'll never take me there again
Let me watch you go
With the sun in my eyes
We've seen how love can grow
Now we'll see how it dies

If I've got to be strong
Don't you know I need to have tonight when you're gone?
'Till you go I need to hold you until the time
Your hands reach out and touch me in the morning
(Mornings where blue and gold and we could feel one another living)
Then just walk away
(We walked with a dream to hold and we could take what the world was giving)
We don't have tomorrow,
(There's no tomorrow here, there's only love and the time to chase it)
But we had yesterday

(But yesterday's gone my love, there's only now and it's time to face it)
Touch me in the morning...

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Ruth Brown's song "Touch Me in the Morning" express the pain and longing of a relationship that is coming to an end. The singer begins by acknowledging that their time together is limited and that they cannot cling to false hopes of a future together. Despite this, they still crave the physical intimacy and emotional connection of their past, causing them to struggle with the reality of their impending separation. The lyrics contain a sense of nostalgia and regret for what once was, as well as a recognition of the need for closure and acceptance.

The chorus emphasizes the singer's conflicting feelings, as they acknowledge the need to be strong and let go, while also yearning for one more night together. The lines "If I've got to be strong, don't you know I need to have tonight when you're gone?" capture this internal struggle between self-preservation and emotional vulnerability. The mention of "touch me in the morning" refers to the idea of a final embrace or a last chance to feel the physical closeness that the singer is desperate for. However, they ultimately resign themselves to the fact that their time has come to an end, and they must face the reality of their separation.

Overall, the lyrics of "Touch Me in the Morning" convey a nuanced and complex emotional landscape, as the singer grapples with the end of a relationship that they desperately wish could continue.

Line by Line Meaning

Touch me in the morning
Let's share a moment of intimacy before you leave.

Then just walk away
You don't have to stay, we don't have a future together.

We don't have tomorrow,
There is no promise of another day, no future.

But we had yesterday
We once shared a love and it is now a memory.

Wasn't it me who said that nothing good's gonna last forever?
I knew that our love would not last forever, but I still cherish the memories.

And wasn't it me who said let's just be glad for the time together?
I wanted to appreciate the time we had together even though it was brief.

It must've been hard to tell me that you've given all you had to give
I understand that you have nothing more to give in this relationship.

If I've got to be strong don't you know I need to have tonight when you're gone?
If I have to be strong and let you go, I need tonight to process my emotions.

'Till you go I need to lie here and think about the last time that you'll touch me in the morning
Before you leave, I need to cherish the last moment we spent together.

Then just close the door leave me as you found me, empty like before
Leave me alone to deal with my sadness, just as you found me before we shared our love.

Let me watch you go with the sun in my eyes
I will watch you leave even if it hurts.

We've seen how love can grow now we'll see how it dies
We experienced the growth of our love, now we must witness its end.

There's no tomorrow here, there's only love and the time to chase it
We only have this moment to cherish our love, no guarantee of tomorrow.

But yesterday's gone my love there's only now and it's time to face it
Our love in the past cannot be changed, we must accept this moment and move on.

Touch me in the morning
Before you leave, let's have one more moment of intimacy to cherish.

Then just walk away
After this moment, you are free to leave and go on with your life.

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Michael Masser, Ron Miller

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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Comments from YouTube:

Frank McNasby

7y↑11

I heard Ruth Brown sing this live at Zanzibar Blue in Philadelphia back in the late 90's while on a date with my now wife. The song has been stuck in my head ever since. I really wish I had gotten her autograph, it was a real treat to see her live and hear her sing.

robert spencer

I had never heard of Ruth Brown but I heard this song on XM radio while driving in my car and like you it stuck in my head. I finally had to go to the internet and try to find it (even though I couldn't remember the artist nor the song title; ain't Google grand?)

Martrina Mosby

Heard this song on an NPR show last night. Love the double entendre! Yes, ma'am Ms Brown!

Tomas Amadis

6y↑5

OMG!! I have been looking for this Song for over twenty years. I first heard it on the radio on a drive down to New Orleans late one night. I thought it was so appropriate. I had been searching under this "old chair'. Thanks for posting it.