It Really Happened: Ruth Brown

The legendary R&B singer Ruth Brown died yesterday in Las Vegas. I had the privilege of seeing "the girl with the teardrop in her voice" perform several times, the most interesting of which was in the nearly empty basement lounge of The Viking Hotel in Newport, RI. It was the night before the 1997 Newport R&B Festival and, as tradition had it, some performers staying at The Viking would go downstairs late in the evening to rehearse and jam with whomever showed up. Well, Ronnie Earl and The Broadcasters were playing for what seemed like family and friends when Ruth Brown walked onstage and absolutely enthralled us. She later joined our table and was as warm and gracious as her music.