Barbara Brown was born in Memphis, Tennessee, and emerged as the lead vocalist of the family-formed soul and gospel ensemble Barbara & The Browns. The group, comprising her sisters Roberta and Betty and brothers Walter, Richard and Maurice, first auditioned with producer Chips Moman in 1963, who persuaded them to record the secular track "Big Party", released on Wilmo Records and later leased to Stax Records; the single peaked at Number 97 on the Billboard Hot 100. Subsequent releases on Stax, including "In My Heart" (1964) and "I Don’t Want Trouble" (1965), failed to chart, but the group continued to record through the 1960s and early 1970s under labels such as Cadet, Atco, Tower and XL, with Barbara also pursuing a solo career. Their discography includes the albums Soul Sounds Of Memphis (1981) and Can’t Find Happiness – The Sounds Of Memphis Recordings (2007), the latter compiling earlier material and unreleased tracks. Barbara Brown passed away in Detroit, Michigan, on 3 February 2010. Although commercial success remained limited, Barbara & The Browns gained respect within Southern soul circles, and posthumous reissues helped cement their legacy.
