T. Graham Brown
Anthony Graham Brown (born October 30, 1954), known professionally as T. Graham Brown, is an American country music singer. Active since 1973, Brown has recorded a total of thirteen studio albums, and has charted more than twenty singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. Three of these singles — "Hell and High Water" and "Don't Go to Strangers" from 1986, and "Darlene" from 1988 — reached Number One, and eight more made Top Ten.
T. Graham Brown | |
|---|---|
Brown performing at Nashville Palace, 2006 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Anthony Graham Brown |
| Born | October 30, 1954[1] Arabi, Georgia, United States |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Labels | Capitol, Intersound, Madacy, Compendia, Aspirion, MCM-World Media, RED Distribution |
| Website | www |
Biography
Brown was born in 1954 in Arabi, Georgia.[2] He first performed in a duo, Dirk & Tony (1973–75) before founding two more bands, "Reo Diamond" (1975) and "T. Graham Brown's Rack of Spam" (1979). He married his wife Sheila in 1980; the couple has a son, Acme Geronimo[citation needed] Brown (born 1989).[3]
Musical career
Brown moved to Nashville in 1982 and found work singing advertising jingles for companies such as McDonald's, Disneyland, Budweiser, Coors, Stroh's, Almond Joy, Coca-Cola, Sears, Dodge Trucks, Ford, Hardee's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, The Nashville Network, B.C.Powders, Dr Pepper, Mountain Dew, 7-Up, Harrah's and many others.[4] He was also the singing narrator in the Taco Bell "Run For the Border" television spots. Brown also found work as a songwriter for E.M.I. Publishing before signing to Capitol Records in 1984. He was with E.M.I. for 13 years. Brown's first release for the label, "Drowning in Memories", peaked at No.39 on the Billboard country charts. The title song of his debut album "I Tell It Like It Used To Be" went to No.7, followed by "I Wish That I Could Hurt That Way Again" to No.4, giving way to a pair of number ones, "Hell and High Water" and "Don't Go To Strangers".[1]
Brown's first release for the label, "Drowning in Memories", peaked at No. 39 and was never included on an album. After it came the No. 7 "I Tell It Like It Used to Be", the first single from his 1986 album of the same name. Counting its title track, this album accounted for four singles: the No. 3 "I Wish That I Could Hurt That Way Again" and two straight Number Ones in "Hell and High Water" and "Don't Go to Strangers".[4]
Brown's second album for the label, Brilliant Conversationalist, followed a year later. Although none of its singles went to Number One, it accounted for three more Top Ten hits in its title track, followed by "She Couldn't Love Me Anymore" and "Last Resort".[5] A third album, 1988's Come as You Were, produced his third and final Number One in "Darlene".[4] Then came the No. 7 title track and No. 30 "Never Say Never". In early 1990, he sang guest vocals on the multi-artist charity single "Tomorrow's World", as well as Tanya Tucker's single "Don't Go Out", from her album Tennessee Woman.
1990 also saw the release of his next album, Bumper to Bumper. This album's lead-off single "If You Could Only See Me Now" went Top Ten with a No. 6 peak, but the other singles — the No. 18 "Moonshadow Road" and No. 53 "I'm Sending One Up for You" — did not fare as well, with the latter being his first single to land outside the Top 40. That same year, he also released an unsuccessful greatest-hits package. His next album, You Can't Take It with You, only accounted for the No. 31 "With This Ring" before he exited Capitol in 1991.
Brown did not record another album until 1998's Wine into Water on the Intersound label. This album produced four more singles for him, although the No. 44 title track was the highest-charting single from it. The subject matter of the lyrics of the song surrounded Brown's then ongoing fight against alcoholism.[4] He then released two more independent albums: The Next Right Thing in 2003 and The Present in 2006.
Brown joined Broadway icon Carol Channing for a duet of "Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree" on her 2012 album True To The Red, White, and Blue. He also recorded a duet of "You Are So Beautiful" with Lulu Roman (of Hee Haw fame) for her 2013 album At Last.[6] In 2012, Brown appeared on a Country/Gospel album[7]
In 2014, Brown again collaborated with producer Mark Carman to produce the Grammy-nominated album, Forever Changed, featuring guest appearances by industry giants; Leon Russell, The Oak Ridge Boys, Steve Cropper, Jeff and Sheri Easter, The Booth Brothers, Three Bridges, Jimmy Fortune, Sonya Isaacs, and Jason Crabb.[8] In July 2014 the first single from the album was released on the MCM World Media Label. The song, "He'll Take Care of You" was written by well known, award-winning songwriters; Dan Penn, Gary Nicholson, and Donnie Fritts.
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Heat | CAN Country | ||
| 1986 | I Tell It Like It Used to Be | 15 | — | — |
| 1987 | Brilliant Conversationalist | 23 | — | — |
| 1988 | Come as You Were | 22 | — | — |
| 1990 | Bumper to Bumper | 33 | — | — |
| 1991 | You Can't Take It with You | — | — | — |
| 1996 | From a Stronger Place
| — | — | — |
| 1998 | Wine into Water | 47 | 38 | 19 |
| 2003 | The Next Right Thing | — | — | — |
| 2006 | The Present | — | — | — |
| 2015 | Forever Changed | 37 | 7 | — |
| Christmas with T. Graham Brown | — | — | — | |
| 2020 | Bare Bones | — | — | — |
Live albums
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Lives! |
| 2004 | Live at Billy Bob's Texas |
Compilation albums
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 1990 | Greatest Hits |
| 2007 | Deja Vu All Over Again/The Best of T. Graham Brown |
| 2015 | Snapshot |
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | CAN Country | |||
| 1985 | "Drowning in Memories" | 39 | — | — |
| "I Tell It Like It Used to Be" | 7 | — | I Tell It Like It Used to Be | |
| 1986 | "I Wish That I Could Hurt That Way Again" | 3 | 2 | |
| "Hell and High Water" | 1 | 1 | ||
| "Don't Go to Strangers" | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1987 | "Brilliant Conversationalist" | 9 | 4 | Brilliant Conversationalist |
| "She Couldn't Love Me Anymore" | 4 | 3 | ||
| 1988 | "The Last Resort" | 4 | 4 | |
| "Darlene" | 1 | * | Come as You Were | |
| "Come as You Were" | 7 | * | ||
| 1989 | "Never Say Never" | 30 | 22 | |
| 1990 | "If You Could Only See Me Now" | 6 | 5 | Bumper to Bumper |
| "Moonshadow Road" | 18 | 9 | ||
| 1991 | "I'm Sending One Up for You" | 53 | 75 | |
| "With This Ring" | 31 | 29 | You Can't Take It with You | |
| "You Can't Take It with You" | — | 68 | ||
| 1998 | "Wine into Water" | 44 | 61 | Wine into Water |
| 1999 | "Happy Ever After" | 68 | 90 | |
| "Never in a Million Tears" | 63 | 94 | ||
| "Memphis Women & Chicken" | 73 | — | ||
| 2003 | "Middle Age Crazy" | 58 | — | The Next Right Thing |
| 2006 | "The Present" | — | — | The Present |
| 2014 | "He'll Take Care of You" (with Vince Gill) | — | — | Forever Changed |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart * denotes unknown peak positions | ||||
Guest singles
| Year | Single | Artist | Peak positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | CAN Country | ||||
| 1990 | "Tomorrow's World" | Various Artists | 74 | — | — |
| "Don't Go Out" | Tanya Tucker | 6 | 11 | Tennessee Woman | |
| 2000 | "Now That's Awesome" | Bill Engvall (with Neal McCoy and Tracy Byrd) | 59 | — | Now That's Awesome |
| 2012 | "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree" | Carol Channing | — | — | True to the Red, White and Blue |
| 2013 | "Working on a Building" | Marty Raybon (with Trace Adkins and Jimmy Fortune) | — | — | Working on a Building |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||
Music videos
| Year | Title | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | "Hell and High Water"[15] | George Bloom |
| 1987 | "Brilliant Conversationalist" | |
| 1988 | "RFD-30529" | John Davis |
| "Come as You Were" | John Lloyd Miller | |
| 1990 | "Don't Go Out" (with Tanya Tucker) | Jack Cole |
| 1991 | "You Can't Take It With You" | |
| 1998 | "Wine Into Water" | Tom Bevins |
| 1999 | "Happy Ever After" | |
| 2003 | "Which Way To Pray" |
Guest appearances
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "Tomorrow's World" (Various Artists) | Gustavo Garzon |
| 2000 | "Now That's Awesome" (with Bill Engvall, Neal McCoy & Tracy Byrd) | Peter Zavadil |
| 2012 | "Working on a Building" (with Marty Raybon, Jimmy Fortune & Trace Adkins) | Mark Carman |
References
- ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 66. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
- ^ Huey, Steve. "T. Graham Brown biography". The Albany Journal. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ "T. Graham Brown". CMT.com. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
- ^ a b c d Colin Larkin, ed. (2003). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Eighties Music (Third ed.). Virgin Books. p. 87. ISBN 1-85227-969-9.
- ^ Huey, Steve. "allmusic (((T. Graham Brown biography)))". AllMusic. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ Record Label (December 7, 2012). "Homesick Entertainment Projects". Homesick Entertainment. Retrieved December 7, 2012.
- ^ "Working On A Building : Credits". Allmusic. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
- ^ "Awards Nominations & Winners". Grammy.com. April 30, 2017. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
- ^ Pair, Patricia (May 9, 1996). "T. Graham Brown to Perform Benefit at GPAC". The Shelby Sun Times. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ^ Roberts, Jeremy (January 3, 2018). "Drowning in Memories with T. Graham Brown, a Country Song's Best Friend". Medium.com. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ^ "Country Star T. Graham Brown Partners with Time Life for Digital Re-Issue of Four Classic Albums on June 5 and a New Album Slated for Fall 2020". TGrahamBrown.com. June 1, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ^ Leiber, Sarah Jae (October 9, 2020). "T. Graham Brown Releases Acoustic Album 'Bare Bones'". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ^ Price, Deborah Evans (August 4, 2020). "T. Graham Brown Stays Busy with a Variety of Projects". SoundsLikeNashville.com. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ^ "Bare Bones". Amazon.com. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
- ^ "New Videoclips" (PDF). Billboard. September 13, 1986.
External links
- Official website
- T. Graham Brown at IMDb