James Brown Is Dead
By Keith Boykin, in music
Monday, December 25 2006, 9:20AM
He was the godfather of soul. For much of his 73 years on the planet, he had his own style of music, dress, and life. He electrified audiences with his tight pants and cape, his dance moves, and his voice. He gave us legendary music for all times, and he was perhaps the last of a generation of recording artists from a now bygone era of American music. James Brown, the bridge between the past and the present, was a legend himself in his own time. He died around 1:45 on Christmas morning at Emory Crawford Long Hospital in Atlanta.
His career spanned six decades, and James Brown left a huge imprint on the ever changing sands of our music. He inspired everyone from Mick Jagger to Michael Jackson. Popularly known as "the hardest working man in show business," James Brown performed until late in his life, even after being diagnosed with prostate cancer. And though he ran into some troubles in his life, he will be remembered mostly for the showman, entertainer and vocalist he was. He was a rare breed, now almost gone. He will be missed by many.
Comments conceal
vincent Aiken
December 25 2006, 10:24AM
thanks Keith, the fact that I read about the death of James Brown on your web page shows how important your page is.I will make a donation in the new year. vince
Mark Norris
December 25 2006, 10:52AM
My condolences to his family. This is going to be a sad Christmas for them and a lot of his admirers and friends. A lot of our true great musicians seem to be heading home.
Keith Jones
December 25 2006, 12:06PM
Truly my heart is saddened at the passing of this musical icon and "soul brother". I was fortunate to live in Augusta GA and behold first hand the generosity of this man who inspite of legal problems proved himself a modelcitizen towards to CSRA. As a child my home was filled with the soul sounds of this all encompassing artist and good matured man. Who recently made peace and atonement in a lot of areas. I guess once you come to a place of contentmentw with what life hands you the only other thing left to do is to fly away.
Rest in Peace Godfather...you deserve it!
The hardesr worker has retired who can fill those shoes
Another African-American Pillar falls with no one in sight to fortify us in their place.
playboyadonis![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.keithboykin.com/blog2/nav-commenters.gif)
December 25 2006, 6:17PM
Hearing this has brought tears to my eyes. I have always been inspired by James Brown's ability to stay connected to his talent as a singer and performer.
I remember growing up during the crafting years of my own singing and performance and always saying to myself that James Brown will never receive the highlight that he deserves; for his mark in the entertainment realms. Although he is much older than I and his reign spans decades, I always felt that his talent was timeless and that he was someone I could learn much from.
I only hope to make such an impact on the world with my talent as he has made with his.
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jazzi
December 26 2006, 3:47PM
Damn!!! Lost another great one one. You said it right when you said James Brown was of a rare breed. He was of that generation that believed in true showmanship. They had real talent & could create their own shit & not sample the hell out of everything else & then call it an original. A lot of these "artists" nowadays should take notes from the likes of Barry White, Luther Vandross, Lou Rawls, Gerald Levert, & now James Brown. Most of these singers today just don't get it. They look cute, dress nice, & know how to make a hot video but for the most part lack any real artistic depth. Many of them don't sound like they should be anywhere near a microphone. There are some exceptions but a lot of these artists could learn a thing or two from the aforementioned & those not mentioned.
To another great one lost, rest in peace.
theeunuch
December 27 2006, 10:24PM
The truly talented performers all seem to be leaving us.
There will never be another Godfather of Soul
May he rest in peace!
Craig Washington
December 29 2006, 2:19AM
JB's contribution to American popular music is immeasureable. As a child of the 60's and 70's i learned how to dance, i mean really dance, to james brown songs. he was the first major artist i heard assert Black pride in the very title of a song. like louis armstrong, james brown reset the standards for his own genre and laid the foundation for his musical progeny.i am reminded of how wynton marsalis once summarized louis armstrongs gift to music. "he taught us to be free." it certainly applies to jb. i was elated to hear that he lay in state onstage at the apollo theater. how wonderfully Black and righteous is that!
Ron Lee
December 31 2006, 9:06AM
Happy Holidays to all, Say It LOUD' I'M BLACK & I'M PROUD, Say It LOUD' I'M BLACK & I'M PROUD, Say It LOUD' I'M BLACK & I'M PROUD. PEACE OUT.
chico
January 5 2007, 1:34AM
Just 2 observations :
I.This man was one of the best talent that had ever walked on the face of this Planet. He shouldn't just go down in history as the King of pop or soul; he is truly the architect of pop culture period.( just my opinion)
2.I still have not made sense of what Rev Al Sharpton meant when he started his sentence at James Brown by " This man wasn't tall or light skinned and didn't have good hair """ and shocked me by ending the same sentence like this ..."" This man looked like us ""
Someone help me understand the connection between us and bad hair please
Ron Lee
January 5 2007, 3:43PM
Hi Chico, the word bad hair may not be apart of your vocabularly as it isn't apart of mine,but there are many black people who eroneously, I might ad uses that term. I myself tell black people when they refer to their hair as bad,nappy etc. that our hair is curly it curls as it grows from our heads. Most people of African desent has culy hair every strand is curly.By the same token many Black Americans call wavy hair curly or good hair. I'm not sure what other people of African desent out side the U.S. feel about hair but for some black americans especially the educated and well off it seems to still be an issue. Basically I beileve Rev.Sharpton was stating that Mr,Brown made us feel proud of our Blackness all Black people before James Brown the Anthem "Say It Loud,I'M BLACK AND I'M PROUD" did not exist. There was a time not too long ago when calling some one "black" was an insult. PEACE OUT. LOVE U ALL.
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