“From the early ‘60s through to 1974, Barbara Brown, along with her sisters, recorded a series of sessions in Memphis. Although they appeared as infrequent singles, taken as a body of work they represent music as good as any ever recorded in that great city of soul.”
"Things Have Gone to Pieces" // Barbara & the Browns
Nestled within the rich tapestry of Memphis' musical heritage is the enigmatic figure of Barbara Brown, a vocalist whose powerful voice remains a hidden gem in the annals of southern soul history.
Alongside her sisters Roberta, Betty, and Maurice, she formed a gospel quartet known collectively as "Barbara & the Browns." The familial ensemble would venture from the confines of sacred song to secular music in 1964 after legendary producer Chips Moman persuaded the group to record "Big Party" for the one-off Wil-Mo label. Leased to Stax later that year, the effort gained enough regional popularity to crack the Top 100 R&B Charts.
Two more Stax singles would follow before the group signed to the fledgling XL label, recording a series of sides released on labels such as Cadet, Tower, Atco, and on XL itself. By 1974, Barbara and her sisters seemingly deserted any dreams of stardom, and many of their recordings remained in the can until 2007 when Kent Soul released "Can't Find Happiness: The Sounds of Memphis Recordings." Several of the 20 tracks released in the late aughts were previously unissued, including a demo of the Leon Payne penned "Things Have Gone to Pieces."
A top-10 hit for George Jones in 1965, the ballad masterfully captures the essence of heartbreak and the tumultuous aftermath of a lost love.
The faucet started dripping in the kitchen
And last night your picture fell down from the wall
Today, the boss said, sorry, I can't use you anymore
And tonight, the light bulb went out in the hall
Things have gone to pieces since you left me
Nothing turns out half-right now it seems
There ain’t nothing in my pocket
But three nickels and a dime
But I’m holding to the pieces of my dream
While Jones's song delivery, imbued with his signature emotional depth and twang, brings an authentic sense of longing and despair, Barbara Brown's powerhouse vocal adds a layer of soulful resonance to the narrative of grief and hopelessness initially laid out by the Possum.
Barbara Brown died in Detroit, Michigan, on Feb. 3, 2010. Half a century after their debut in the music world, she and her sisters remain largely hidden treasures. Yet, Barbara's interpretation of "Things Have Gone to Pieces" shines brightly as a quintessential piece of southern soul music, a performance so compelling it's easy to imagine the Possum himself would have admired it. — M.H.
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