Oscar Brown Jr. — Music legend and KUCR DJ
KUCR History is Good to Know
The late Oscar Brown, Jr. was a true American Jazz icon and KUCR DJ. A prolific and accomplished singer, songwriter, playwright, poet, actor, and activist, he penned the seminal songs “Brown Baby,” “Bid ’Em In,” “Afro Blue,” and “Work Song,” first popularized by Mahalia Jackson, Nona Simone, and Brown himself in the early 1960s.
His debut album Sin and Soul (1960) launched Brown on to the international stage, where he remained until his passing in 2005.
Born and raised in the south side of Chicago in the era of Jim Crow segregation, brown was an unapologetic and tireless advocate for human and civil rights in the United States and around the world, exemplified in his music, plays, and stage productions.
His numerous collaborators include Muhammad Ali, Max Roach, Lorraine Hansberry, Quincy Jones, and Steve Allen, with whom Brown co-hosted the Jazz Scene USA television series. UCR’s acclaimed African American scholar, Distinguised Professor of History, and KUCR jazz DJ Sterling Stuckey knew Brown from their teenage years in Chicago. Stuckey sponsored Oscar’s tenure as a Regents’ Professor in 1999, at UC Riverside.
Upon discovering that Oscar Brown was on campus, KUCR manager Louis Vandenberg contacted Dr. Stuckey to arrange an introduction. Vandenberg was keenly aware of Brown’s music and the two hit it off. He offered Brown his own program on KUCR, and produced the show.
Brown’s program, which began in 1999 and continued through 2002, was a deeply compelling amalgam of music and commentary, infused with personal stories (“one day I was with the Beatles in New York…”), political commentary, “how I wrote and recorded my songs” and hilarious wit.
“I am so grateful for the time I spent with Oscar. Even though he passed in 2005, I think of him almost every day. So many stories…,” said Vandenberg.
Oscar Brown Jr. was part of the great and continuing tradition of Jazz on KUCR.
