North East Digital Village
VILLAGE >IN MEMORY OF
In Memory of Oscar Brown, Jr.
Born: Oscar Brown, Jr.,
Deceased: Sunday, May 29, 2005 in Chicago at age 78
Oscar Brown, Jr., RIP
I was privileged to meet Oscar Brown, Jr. and mix sound for his performance at a dance weekend this past February. Here's what I wrote about it at the time:
As always, this was a great weekend. But I have to say that Saturday night in particular was one of the best nights so far in my 4+ years of dancing! Not only was it an honor to mix some sound for Oscar Brown Jr. and the great musicians accompanying him, everyone involved (the organizers, musicians, instructors, and DJ--as well as Tim and Jean, the awesomest hosts ever) worked together to create an amazing vibe that, for me, lasted well into the next, sleep-deprived day.
I'm serious: if it were possible to distill the vibe from Saturday night at about 1 AM and put it in a bottle, both Viagra and Paxil would be driven from the market.
I hope I'll have the same kind of energy at that age; and, should I ever accomplish as much as Brown did, I hope I'll have the same kind of humility. He was an amazing guy and I'm glad I got the chance to meet him before he died this week.
"When out of men's hearts all the hate is hurled, you're gonna live in a better world."
Requiescat in pace.
cite: Rob Szarka's blog at the Sea of Noise
_/\_TO THE TOP
The Passing of a Legend
http://www.oscarbrownjr.com/
"Chicago born legendary singer, songwriter, playwright, poet and civil rights activist Oscar Brown, Jr. died today after a brief illness. He was 78 years old. Brown impacted millions of people world-wide during his illustrious career, with both his music and his politics.
Brown wrote over a thousand songs, and more than a dozen musical plays. His rendition of the musical, "Big Time Buck White," appeared on Broadway starring Muhammad Ali. However, his dynamic productions "Opportunity Please Knock" & "Great Nitty Gritty", tapping into the talents of gang members and other youth in the Chicago area, is credited with turning around the lives of hundreds of young people in the city. He is also noted for such classic compositions as,"The Snake,", "Work Song", and
"Signifyin' Monkey." Proving that his works are timeless, Brown had become a regular on Russell Simmons' Def Poetry Jam.
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