Celebrates Black History Month
All Photos: Alan Mercer Make-Up: Rudy Calvo
Maxine Brown began singing as a child, performing with two New York based gospel groups called the 'Angelairs' and the 'Royaltones' when she was a teenager. In 1960, she signed with the small Nomar record label, who released the smooth soul ballad 'All in My Mind' which was written by Maxine. The single became a hit, climbing to number two on the R&B charts , and it was quickly followed by 'Funny,' which peaked at number three.
Maxine was poised to become a star and she moved to the bigger ABC/Paramount in 1962, but left the label after an unsuccessful year despite several singles to sign for the New York-based uptown soul label, Wand Records, in 1963.
Maxine recorded her best work at Wand, a Scepter Records subsidiary, having a string of sizable hits over the next three years. Among these were the Carole King/Gerry Goffin songs 'Oh No Not My Baby', which reached number 24 on the pop charts in 1964, and 'It's Gonna Be Alright', which peaked at #26 the following year. She also recorded duets with label-mate Chuck Jackson, including a reworked version of an Alvin Robinson hit, 'Something You Got', which climbed to #10 on the R&B chart.
All backing vocals for Maxine's records were performed by Cissy Houston and the Sweet Inspirations, the same group that backed Elvis, plus emerging writer-producers Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson. Hoping to increase the line of hits for Maxine and her singing partner, Chuck Jackson, Ashford and Simpson took their song catalog to Scepter Records looking for a deal. When they were turned down, the couple approached Berry Gordy at Motown Records who immediately hired them. Songs that were penned for Maxine and Chuck became blockbuster hits for Ray Charles, such as 'Let's Go Get Stoned', as well as Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's 'Ain't No Mountain High Enough.'
In 1969, Maxine left Wand for Commonwealth United where she recorded two singles, the first 'We'll Cry Together' reached #10 in the Billboard R&B chart and also made the lower reaches of the Hot 100. Despite her seeming lack of visibility, Maxine Brown is acknowledged as one of the finer R&B vocalists of her time, able to handle soul, jazz, and pop with equal aplomb.
I was lucky enough to take the photos for Maxine's latest release, 'From The Heart.' I really fell in love with the person behind the music. It was the legendary make-up artist Rudy Calvo who introduced me to Maxine and did the make-up and general styling for these photos. I spoke with Maxine over the phone this past Friday as we talked about some of her biggest hits!
AM: Maxine, I didn't know you wrote 'All In My Mind!'
MB: Yes!
AM: You are a great songwriter! How many more have you written and recorded?
MB: I wrote four songs for my latest CD 'From The Heart' and I hadn't written any songs to be published until then. I wrote the first number 'Keep On Keepin On' with my writing partner Rebecca Murphy.
AM: I love that album.
MB: I love 'Love Me By Name' which was written by Leslie Gore. I took it down to a jazz/R&B mix.
AM: The ability to mix singing styles is one of the things you're most know for.
MB: Thank you, I love that. I get bored doing one thing all the time. You can quote me on that one! (Laughter)
AM: I sure will. Now was 'All In My Mind' the first song you wrote?
MB: That was the first song that I even attempted to write. Do you want to hear the story?
AM: Yes!
MB: I came out of gospel and knew nothing about rock n' roll. This guy wanted me for a group like 'The Platters.' They needed a girl singer who could sing the baritone part up high. I said, "I don't know anything about rock n' roll music." He said, "I'll teach you." He started a group called 'The Manhattans' (not the group more famous from the 70's) and everything was fine but the guys were of the age that they were getting drafted into the service. So the group had to break up. There were three of us left so we called ourselves 'The Treys.'
AM: Did you work a lot as 'The Treys?'
MB: We did a lot of under the table studio work and some background sessions. One night the leader of the group told me I never did anything for the music. He threw a song title at me literally, and told me to write a song and have it finished by the next rehearsal.
AM: He was pushy!
MB: I was so angry at him. I was sitting at home alone one night pouting and angry at past relationships and men in general. I picked up the song title and the story just popped in my head. I wrote the song and within fifteen minutes it was done.
AM: That was real inspiration then.
MB: I found out I'm an inspirational writer, not one of those writers who says, "I'm going home to write tonight." Even when I write my raps in songs it just comes to me and I go with it. Anyway he eventually asked me if I finished the song he wanted me to write and I said, "Yeah, I finished that old thing." He said, "Sing it for me then." I did and all he was satisfied with was that I did what I was told! (Laughter) We never got back to the song.
MB: Fast forward two years ahead when a friend asked me to come sing with a band, which I had never done before.
AM: Really!?! That seems unlikely.
MB: In gospel you have a piano player and that's it. So I went and sang 'Misty' and Mal Williams, the guy who was booking the club liked what I did and he asked me if I wanted to work there. So each week I got to play with a live band and I'd get a new song. He ended up taking me into the studio with that song.
AM: Do you remember that recording session?
MB: They recorded the guitar and bass player and took so long they only had thirty minutes left for me so I recorded it twice. I nailed it the first time but we did two takes for safety.
AM: What was the next step?
MB: They pushed it to every record company and none of the major labels wanted it but this little company 'Nomar Records' liked the song immediately and they dubbed in a piano player and the demo became an instant million seller!
AM: And it's really just the demo!!! I love this story.
MB: Do you want to hear something? I'm in the business now but Nomar folded and my manager and husband at the time Mal Williams didn't want me to be a one hit artist. He took me to ABC/Paramount but then payola came around and they didn't want to get caught up in that so they didn't have any luck getting any real hits for me.
AM: How did you end up on Ward records where you had your hits?
MB: One day I walked into a restaurant on Broadway and there was Florence Greenberg sitting there with all her artists like the Shirelles and Chuck Jackson. They invited me over to the table for lunch and she asked me when I was going to leave the no good company for a good one. I told her when she went over and got me I would and the next day she went over and did it. She took everything that ABC/Paramount recorded on me so they wouldn't be able to release something when she did. She started releasing a lot of stuff that ABC had recorded. I went with them in 1963 but I didn't have a hit until 1964 with 'Oh No Not My Baby.'
AM: Isn't that your biggest hit?
MB: I think so. Back in the day 'All In My Mind' was the million seller but I'm more known today for 'Oh No Not My Baby' because it was written by Carole King.
MB: That's a great song written by Rose Marie McCoy. I love it and that's a show stopper. I do it everywhere I go. I even put a rap to that one.
AM: Are you doing a lot of live performing these days?
MB: Yes I am! I also sing with a group of two other ladies, Beverly Crosby, who used to be with 'The Crystals' and Ella Garrett who is a jazz singer by rights. We got together and realized what good harmony we have. We call ourselves 'The Wild Women.'
AM: That sounds so good. I wish you would bring it to LA.
MB: I do too. It's a fabulous show. We took it to Japan and played all theatres. We just left Detroit.
AM: So you are staying very busy?
MB: Oh yes I am busy all the time. I'm also in a gospel group called 'The Healing Balm.' We're going to put on a performance later this month for Black History Month. We actually make a play out of it. I'm also getting ready to go to Spain.
AM: When are you going to Spain?
MB: I'll be there in August. I sing in Spanish sometimes.
AM: Do you know Spanish?
MB: No, not very well. 'Un poquito' but I can sing in Spanish. I've done that in South America and in Puerto Rico.
AM: Maxine, you're poised to get a lot of new fans now with the internet.
MB: I hope so! That's how people learn about everything now. How do you find the time to do all that? I need help with all that! I need a fan base, I really do!
AM: Well you're getting one now! Since it's Black History Month I want to ask you what differences you've seen in your lifetime culturally?
MB: Oh when I was a girl everyone stayed in their own place. I was lucky that my school was kind of mixed at the time. We had white teachers and everything was nice but in general we weren't doing so well, but now it has opened up tremendously.
AM: Now we don't see color.
MB: I never have.
AM: I never have either. You love the idea of Black History Month don't you?
MB: I love it. We are telling it like it was and there is a reason for the story because it was the truth. 'The Healing Balm' shows how slavery started in Africa and came to America enslaved in the south, but now we're all one.
AM: Maxine, you are a leading force in the power of love for a whole generation.
MB: Oh thank you, thank you.
To learn more about Maxine Brown visit her website http://www.maxinebrown.com/
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