Years before Aretha Franklin was crowned Queen of Soul, Ruth Brown reigned as the Original Queen of R&B. She achieved a distinct style, sassy and streetwise, which made her one of the more influential ...

Brown started out in the '40s and influenced a host of singers, including Stevie Wonder and Aretha Franklin. Her hits include "Teardrops from My Eyes." She died in 2006. Originally broadcast in 1997.

This essay is one in a series celebrating women whose major contributions in recording occurred before the time frame of NPR Music's list of 150 Greatest Albums Made By Women. Ruth Brown was R&B's ...

It wasn’t the first time — or the last — that David Nehls would see the legendary R&B singer Ruth Brown. Still, it might have been the most indelible. The noted local pianist and musical director was ...