Forgotten Music -- Ruth Brown

Ruth Brown was "Miss Rhythm," and that's the title of her excellent autobiography, a book well worth reading. She had a string of hits through out the '50s, and one of them will be my "Song of the Day" today. Others included "This Little Girl's Gone Rockin'," which was co-written by Bobby Darin, "Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean," "Smooth Operator," "Oh, What a Dream," "Mambo Baby," and plenty of others. I can hear them coming out of a lo-fi car speaker now.

Brown pretty much left the business in the '60s, but she came back strong in the '70s as both and actress and a singer. She won a Tony Award for her role in Blues on Broadway, and she's in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.