Patricia “Pat” Brown (14 September 1949 – 5 September 2019) was an American soul and blues singer based out of Jackson, Mississippi who was well-known for her hit with Willie Clayton, "Equal Opportunity." Brown received her inspiration from artists like Aretha Franklin and Ann Pebbles. She recorded seven albums, four of which were on her own label, Tapna.
Patricia "Pat" Ann Rush one of nine children, was born
to the late Jessie Rush and Gertruline
Davidson Rush. She was born in what is
still the family home at 623 21st Street, Meridian, Miss. As a child, her idols
and babysitters were Al Wilson (Show & Tell), David and Jimmy Ruffin who
pushed and inspired her to sing and work hard. Pat had a great voice and proved
she could sing not only Gospel but Blues, Memphis Soul, dance music, pop
standards, R&B and smooth contemporary soul.
She attended public school in Meridian where she graduated
T.J. Harris High in 1967 and T. J. Harris Junior College. She was majorette in
the then renowned T.J. Harris Tiger Band. While at T.J. Harris Jr. College, she
joined a group called the Dynamics which later became The Commodores. After
graduation she enrolled in Mississippi Valley State University and received a
B.S. in Physical Education. After finishing MVSU, Pat taught in
the Meridian Public Schools where she met her husband, Mr. Josh Brown Jr. Pat and Josh married March, 16, 1973, and moved to Jackson, Miss. She started her recording career after moving to Jackson.
the Meridian Public Schools where she met her husband, Mr. Josh Brown Jr. Pat and Josh married March, 16, 1973, and moved to Jackson, Miss. She started her recording career after moving to Jackson.
Brown issued her solo debut, Ladies' Night (Ace) in 1996,
after serving a long apprenticeship as a back-up musician (piano) and a back-up
singer to Willie Clayton, Barbara Lewis, Dinah Washington, Solomon Burke and
others. With the help of Willie Clayton, she scored a modest chitlin' circuit
hit with the duet "Equal Opportunity" from the same LP. which has become
a southern soul anthem and her signature song which gained her a lot of
attention due to her unique tone and vocal range.The song was co-written by
master songwriter Bob Jones.
A Woman's Thang, featuring the radio-friendly "This
Girl Needs A Tune-Up," was issued in 1998 (Avanti). Burning Hot And Heavy
appeared in 2000 (Tapna), and in 2002 Brown had another minor hit with
"Honey Costs Money," from the CD New Tricks (Tapna). This was noted
as her best album as it features the smash "Two Week Notice", a slow
soul diamond with great lyrics.
In 2007 the Tapna album “For Your Information Only”
contained Ronnie Lovejoy's hit "Live In Woman" and the slow rolling
"If It's Good For You". Fans of mainstream pop R & B also enjoyed
"Take Your Time". Within a year of the albums release, Pat had gone
from being a minor chitlin' circuit recording act to a Southern Soul headliner
with her own "Live In Woman" Tour. Pat Brown had a great voice and
proved she could sing blues, Memphis soul, R & B dance music, pop standards
and smooth contemporary soul. She has performed with the following artists,
either as a a part of their show or as the opening act, such as: B.B. King,
Percy Sledge, Tyrone Davis, Bobby Rush, Al Green, Johnny Taylor, Willie Clayton,
her hero and mentor.
Pat was a life-long member of Macedonia Primitive Baptist
Church where she started serving and singing at a young age in the Junior
Choir. She went on to become known as Macedonia's Song Bird as she was the
dynamic lead singer of the choir. Over her career Pat had performed primarily
in the south, but also in Detroit, Chicago, Washington, D.C., New York City,
St. Louis, San Fransisco, Long Beach, Milwaukee, Miami, Helsinki Finland and
Amsterdam, Holland. Every Sunday that she was not on tour, she traveled back to
Meridian to be in and serve her church. She was the featured artist for the
Annual Scholarship Ball held in February of each year. Her friends in the Blues
Entertainment industry accompanied her. This ball is Macedonia's main
fundraiser that assists young students afford to complete their college
education. Pat was always eager to travel back to Meridian to serve her church
in whatever way she could.
Pat was a founding member of the Central Mississippi Blues
Society and hostess of Blue Monday held in Jackson. During her career, Pat has
earned many awards including the 2017 Jackson Indie ICON Award and the 2019
Jackson Music Awards. She is featured on the Mississippi Blues Trail with a
marker in downtown Meridian.
During late 2019 she
was hospitalized in a Jackson, Mississippi-area hospital where she died on Thursday,
September 5, 2019. Aged 69, (Edited mainly
from The Meridian Star)
11 comments:
For “Pat Brown – New Tricks “go here:
https://www.upload.ee/files/12272755/Pat_Brown_-_New_Tricks__2002_.rar.html
1. New Tricks
2. My Old Man And Mrs. Jones
3. You Got To Know
4. Honey Cost Money
5. 99.9 Precent Chance
6. I'm In Love With Your Man
7. Two Week Notice
8. U-Me And She
9. A White Dress, A Blue Me
10. Love On Loan
11. There'll Come A Time
A big thank you to Don Crowe for above album.
Albums below are also available if requested.
Pat Brown - Burning Hot & Heavy (2000)
Pat Brown - Equal Opportunity [1996]
Pat Brown - For Your Information Only (2007)
Pat Brown - Ladies Night (1996)
Pat Brown - Woman's Thang (1998)
Thanks for this Bob. I didn't have any albums by Pat Brown, so nice to get a copy of this today. And I'd certainly appreciate copies of those other 5 albums if you do post them.
Nice, nice site Bob...I'm extremely jealous!
Really enjoyed the write-up on Pat Brown, and look forward dipping into the other articles
Cheers
Hello BM, Here's the original link as it was posted to me. It lasts 7 days only. Once gone It's GONE!
https://wetransfer.com/downloads/5fc1e49b1c65497cda4cf1e4f79a1cbd20200914141943/34c5d6
You may have to find your own art work on some.Regards, Bob
Thanks Bob, just d/d it now. I'll look around later for more art work. Good to get these tracks.
I would love to get a link for all of Pat Brown's albums. Thanks in advance
Hello Mike, Here's all the above albums. Not all artwork is included. Regards, Bob.
https://workupload.com/file/Bx2hkNAKGmc
Thabk you very much Bob
Hello Bob,
Greetings! My name is Parish I'm a DJ from Aberdeen, Mississippi just 2 hours north of Pat Brown's hometown. Great article! I had no idea she was from my own state! Her music & voice is phenomenal! Could I please have a download link to her discography please sir?
Best wishes,
DJ PC
Hi DJPC, The link is right above your comment. I had re-upped it on 18 March 2021. The link still works. Regards, Bob
Ok, awesome! THANK YOU so much Bob!
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