Published in The Islander Magazine January 2014
There are many jewels in the treasure chest of American jazz music: Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, among them. Yet there are only a handful of female vocalists who could claim to have worked with these and so many other influential jazz music pioneers. Jewel Brown (speaking of jewels) is on that short list of vocalists, and one of very few still performing. Brown recently performed at Galveston’s Opera House with another legend, Joe Sample. “Jewel Brown is one of the greatest blues singers around,” said Sample, earlier this year.
Like most entertainers Brown appreciates a compliment but has never been one for categorizing her abilities into one genre of music. Performing as a lead vocalist in Louis Armstrong’s band from 1961 to 1968 she leaned toward jazz on a nightly basis but always maintained a more ‘bread and butter’ approach to her occupation. Blues, jazz, R&B, pop were all part of the job as far as Jewel Brown was concerned. “When I grew up, if you had a gig, you did whatever was necessary for the gig. We didn’t limit ourselves. We did it all. Even if it was a country and western gig, we did country and western songs. It just didn’t matter. As long as we were having a gig, trying to make a buck.”
Born in 1937, Brown grew up in Houston’s Third Ward and claims her strong bond with her mother and father and God, was and still is, her guiding force in life. Watching her parents struggle to raise six children (Jewel, the youngest) Brown prayed to one day help her parents financially. Her prayers were answered at age 9 when she began winning $25 a week in a local talent contest. “All I wanted to do was make some money… Everything that I’ve ever done I knew had to be a gift from the Father and you’re supposed to use it as needed. And that’s all I ever thought I was doing.”
It was with her parent’s blessing and professional help that Brown officially began her singing career at 12 years of age, working at Galveston’s Manhattan Club (with Bobby Blue Bland) and the Casablanca Club in Dickenson, Texas in the late 1940’s. Brown established herself as a vibrant and sassy vocalist throughout the 1950’s primarily in Houston with her brother Ted’s group, as well as with Henry Hayes and Elmore Nixon. Gigs in Los Angeles at The Club Pigalle and in Dallas at Jack Ruby’s nightclubs, lead to the opportunity to perform in Louis Armstrong’s band. Along the way, Brown also met, and eventually married, Atlantic Records songwriter, Eddie Curtis. The couple had one child in 1955, Edward, but divorced in 1956.
Brown made many great recordings with Armstrong, though much of Louis Armstrong’s most popular work does not include Jewel Brown sung numbers. Armstrong is best known for his ‘cross over’ songs (generally referring to artists who appealed to both black and white audiences) like “What A Wonderful World” and “Hello Dolly!” - the latter, kicking the Beatles off the #1 spot on the charts in 1964. Jewel Brown’s vocal performances, by all accounts, were memorable and Armstrong closed the first and second half of his shows with songs sung by Brown. Brown appears in two films with Armstrong as well, “Louis Armstrong and The All Stars” and “Solo”.
After Armstrong’s death in 1971 Brown began working the Nevada circuit, headlining at Harrah’s in Las Vegas and palling around with Sarah Vaughan and the likes of Sammy Davis Jr. Just as Brown’s glamorous life and solo career was building momentum, her mother became ill and, and despite being able to afford to have someone look after her, Brown felt she needed to return to Houston. “My mom and dad were people that loved their children. And they loved each other. That’s how I was able to be out there until I was able to take care of myself… This is why there is nothing I didn’t want to do for her (mother) - until the day she died. Whatever it was, I tried to do it. And I did the same for my dad.”
Just as Brown had entered into show business to help her parents she once again went to work to find a way to be of service to them, though this time remaining close to home. In 1972 she opened a beauty salon (Sir Brown’s Hair Palace) with her brother, Alphonse.
Brown’s career never reached the level of notoriety she received while working with Louis Armstrong but she continued to play gigs and record with many respected jazz and blues artists like Houston’s own, Arnett Cobb and Milton Hopkins. Brown still lives in Houston’s Third Ward, in the same house she helped her parents buy over 60 years ago, and performs the occasional gig. In 2011 she was flown to Moscow to sing at Russian President, Vladimir Putin’s birthday party (apparently Putin’s two favorite singers are Tina Turner and Jewel Brown)
Jewel Brown is currently on the Dialtone record label out of Austin and recently released a CD with Milton Hopkins (2012). Visit www.DialtoneRecords.com to hear samples and buy.
To see the video interview with Jewel Brown and a dynamic performance from 1963 (with Louis Armstrong) http://youtu.be/MegutC1rUok
