Night Time Is the Right Time

Last updated
"The Right Time"
The Right Time single cover.jpg
Single by Nappy Brown
Released1957 (1957)
RecordedNew York City, 1957
Genre Rhythm and blues
Length3:02
Label Savoy
Songwriter(s) N. Brown (record label credit)

"Night Time Is the Right Time" or "The Right Time" is a rhythm and blues song recorded by American musician Nappy Brown in 1957. It draws on earlier blues songs and has inspired popular versions, including those by Ray Charles, Rufus and Carla, and James Brown, which reached the record charts. Creedence Clearwater Revival recorded a version of the song on their 1969 album, Green River . [1] The Animals also included a version of the song on their debut album The Animals , released in 1964.

Contents

Earlier songs

Blues pianist Roosevelt Sykes (listed as "the Honey Dripper") recorded "Night Time Is the Right Time" in 1937. [2] Called "one of his 'hits' of the day", [3] it is a moderate-tempo twelve-bar blues that features Sykes on vocal and piano. It has been suggested that it was "drawn from the old vaudeville tradition": [4]

Now I want you to tell me, mama after I sing this song
Can I take you with me tonight darlin', and hold you in my arms
Because night time is the right time, to be with the one you love, with the one you love

In 1938, Big Bill Broonzy recorded the song, as "Night Time Is the Right Time No. 2," with slightly different (and more suggestive) lyrics. [5] The same year, Roosevelt Sykes recorded a new version, similarly entitled "Night Time Is the Right Time #2," [6] also with slightly different lyrics. These earliest recordings of "Night Time Is the Right Time" are credited to Roosevelt Sykes and Leroy Carr. Carr died in 1935 without any known recordings of the song; "Night Time Is The Right Time" bears similarity to Carr's "When the Sun Goes Down". [7]

Nappy Brown song

In 1957, Nappy Brown recorded the song as "The Right Time". [8] Called "a highlight of Brown's early career", [9] his version features additional lyrics with background singers answering his vocal lines. The instrumental accompaniment is provided by Buster Cooper on trombone, Hilton Jefferson on alto sax, Budd Johnson on tenor sax, Kelly Owens on piano, Skeeter Best on guitar, Leonard Gaskin on bass, and Bobby Donaldson on drums. Brown's song opens with

You know the night time (ba-do-day), is the right time (ba-do-day)
To be (ba-do-day), with the one you love (ba-do-day)

Brown's version did not reach the national record charts, [10] but was "borrowed by Ray Charles in short order". [9] During his career, Brown recorded several versions of the song (sometimes varying the title). His original single lists the songwriter as "N. Brown".

Ray Charles version

Ray Charles recorded his version, titled "(Night Time Is) The Right Time", on October 28, 1958, at the Atlantic Records studio in New York City. [11] According to Brown, "The difference between me and Ray Charles's ‘Night Time Is the Right Time' ... is he had it up-tempo with Mary Ann and them behind him—the ladies. I had mine in a slow tempo with a gospel group behind me. That was my gospel group. But he got everything just like mine, note for note". [12] Margie Hendrix with Charles' backup singers the Raelettes provided the accompaniment to Charles' vocals.

Released as a single, it reached number five on the Billboard R&B chart and number 95 on its Hot 100 chart in 1959. [10] The songwriters were listed as "Brown-Cadena-Herman" on the single and the albums Ray Charles in Person (1960) and The Genius Sings the Blues (1961); [13] however, some later anthologies only list Lew Herman, also known as Herman Lubinsky, who was the owner of Nappy Brown's record label. [11] The song is also included on Ray Charles at Newport (1958) and the film soundtrack of Ray (2004).

In the second season episode of The Cosby Show "Happy Anniversary", the Huxtable family lip-syncs to Ray Charles' version. CNN's Lisa Respers France stated "No 'Cosby Show' list is complete without this family performance... Keshia Knight Pulliam stole our hearts as little Rudy Huxtable in this scene." [14] while Vulture called it The Cosby Show's best musical moment. [15] In 1997, TV Guide ranked this episode number 54 on its '100 Greatest Episodes of All Time' list. [16]

On season 6, episode 9 of Moesha "Definitely Not the Cosbys", Frank daydreams about what would it be like if they were the Huxtables. They lip synch the Ray Charles version like how they did in the Cosby Show.

James Brown version

James Brown recorded the song for the small Churchill/Augusta record label. It was released in 1983 as the B-side of his single "Bring It On...Bring It On". Brown's version (subtitled "To be With the One That You Love") went on to reach number 73 in the Billboard R&B chart. [10] Robert Christgau reviewed Brown's version favorably, singling out for praise the contribution of its unidentified female guest vocalist, "a Brownette who approaches any kind of note as if she owns it." [17]

Related Research Articles

The Raelettes were an American girl group formed in 1958 to provide backing vocals for Ray Charles. They were reformed from the group The Cookies. Between 1966 and 1973, the Raelettes recorded on Tangerine Records as a separate act produced and accompanied by Charles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roosevelt Sykes</span> Musical artist

Roosevelt Sykes was an American blues musician, also known as "the Honeydripper".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Really Got Me</span> 1964 single by the Kinks

"You Really Got Me" is a song by English rock band the Kinks, written by frontman Ray Davies. The song, originally performed in a more blues-orientated style, was inspired by artists such as Lead Belly and Big Bill Broonzy. Two versions were recorded, with the second performance used for the final single. Lead guitarist Dave Davies performs the song’s famous guitar solo. Although it was long rumoured that future Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page had performed the song's guitar solo, this has been debunked by Page himself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">What'd I Say</span> 1959 single by Ray Charles

"What'd I Say" is an American rhythm and blues song by Ray Charles, released in 1959. As a single divided into two parts, it was one of the first soul songs. The composition was improvised one evening late in 1958 when Charles, his orchestra, and backup singers had played their entire set list at a show and still had time left; the response from many audiences was so enthusiastic that Charles announced to his producer that he was going to record it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Tears of a Clown</span> 1970 single by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles

"The Tears of a Clown" is a song written by Hank Cosby, Smokey Robinson, and Stevie Wonder and originally recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles for the Tamla Records label subsidiary of Motown, first appearing on the 1967 album Make It Happen. The track was re-released in the United Kingdom as a single in July 1970, and it became a number-one hit on the UK Singles Chart for the week ending September 12, 1970. Subsequently, Motown released a partially re-recorded and completely remixed version as a single in the United States as well, where it quickly became a number-one hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B Singles charts.

"Mama Told Me Not to Come", also written as "Mama Told Me (Not to Come)", is a song by American singer-songwriter Randy Newman written for Eric Burdon's first solo album in 1966. Three Dog Night's 1970 cover topped the US pop singles chart. Tom Jones and Stereophonics' version also reached No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hit the Road Jack</span> 1961 song by Percy Mayfield

"Hit the Road Jack" is a song written by the rhythm and blues singer Percy Mayfield and recorded by Ray Charles. The song was a US number 1 hit in 1961, and won a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Recording, becoming one of Charles' signature songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goin' Down Slow</span> Blues standard written by St. Louis Jimmy Oden

"Goin' Down Slow" or "Going Down Slow" is a blues song composed by American blues singer St. Louis Jimmy Oden. It is considered a blues standard and "one of the most famous blues of all".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sweet Home Chicago</span> Blues standard first recorded by Robert Johnson

"Sweet Home Chicago" is a blues standard first recorded by Robert Johnson in 1936. Although he is often credited as the songwriter, several songs have been identified as precedents. The song has become a popular anthem for the city of Chicago despite ambiguity in Johnson's original lyrics. Numerous artists have interpreted the song in a variety of styles.

<i>Silver Throat: Bill Cosby Sings</i> 1967 studio album by Bill Cosby

Silver Throat: Bill Cosby Sings (1967) is the sixth album by Bill Cosby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)</span> Blues standard written by T-Bone Walker

"Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad)" (commonly referred to as "Stormy Monday") is a song written and recorded by American blues electric guitar pioneer T-Bone Walker. It is a slow twelve-bar blues performed in the West Coast blues-style that features Walker's smooth, plaintive vocal and distinctive guitar work. As well as becoming a record chart hit in 1948, it inspired B.B. King and others to take up the electric guitar. "Stormy Monday" became Walker's best-known and most-recorded song.

<i>The Genius Hits the Road</i> 1960 studio album by Ray Charles

The Genius Hits the Road is a 1960 album by Ray Charles. The concept album focuses on songs written about various parts of the United States. It peaked at number nine on the pop album charts and produced a US #1 single, "Georgia on My Mind".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boom Boom (John Lee Hooker song)</span> Blues standard

"Boom Boom" is a song written by American blues singer and guitarist John Lee Hooker and recorded October 26, 1961. Although it became a blues standard, music critic Charles Shaar Murray calls it "the greatest pop song he ever wrote". "Boom Boom" was both an American R&B and pop chart success in 1962 and a UK top-twenty hit in 1992.

"Drown in My Own Tears", originally credited as "I'll Drown in My Tears", is a song written by Henry Glover. It is best known in the version released as a single in 1956 by Ray Charles on the Atlantic record label.

<i>Ray Charles in Person</i> 1960 live album by Ray Charles

In Person is a live album recorded by Ray Charles on May 28, 1959 on a rainy night in Atlanta, Georgia at Morris Brown College's Herndon Stadium. All tracks from this album together with those from Ray Charles at Newport were also released on the 1987 Atlantic compilation CD, Ray Charles Live.

Rose Marie McCoy was an American songwriter. She began her career as an aspiring singer before becoming a prolific songwriter during the 1950s and 1960s. Many artists have recorded some of the over 800 songs she published, including Big Maybelle, James Brown, Ruth Brown, Nat King Cole, Aretha Franklin, Elvis Presley, and Ike & Tina Turner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farther Up the Road</span> Blues standard first recorded by Bobby "Blue" Bland

"Farther Up the Road" or "Further on Up the Road" is a blues song first recorded in 1957 by Bobby "Blue" Bland. It is an early influential Texas shuffle and features guitar playing that represents the transition from the 1940s blues style to the 1960s blues-rock style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driving Wheel</span> Blues song first recorded by Roosevelt Sykes in 1936

"Driving Wheel", also called "Drivin' Wheel" or "Driving Wheel Blues", is blues song first recorded by Roosevelt Sykes in 1936. It was an influential early blues composition and has been recorded by numerous artists, including Junior Parker and Al Green, whose renditions were hits on the record charts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Here We Go Again (Ray Charles song)</span> 1967 song by Ray Charles

"Here We Go Again" is a country music standard written by Don Lanier and Red Steagall that first became notable as a rhythm and blues single by Ray Charles from his 1967 album Ray Charles Invites You to Listen. It was produced by Joe Adams for ABC Records/Tangerine Records. To date, this version of the song has been the biggest commercial success, spending twelve consecutive weeks on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 15.

Marjorie Hendrix was an American rhythm and blues singer and founding member of the Raelettes, who were the backing singers for Ray Charles, the father of her child, Charles Wayne Hendrix.

References

  1. "Green River - Creedence Clearwater Revival". AllMusic .
  2. Decca Records 7324
  3. Demetre, Jacques; Waterhouse, Don (1994). The Prewar Blues Story (Liner notes). Various artists. Best of Blues Records. p. 25. BoB 20.
  4. Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). "Night Time Is the Right Time". Encyclopedia of the Blues. University of Arkansas Press. p.  463. ISBN   1-55728-252-8.
  5. Vocalion Records 4149
  6. Decca 7438
  7. Hansen, Barry (2000). Rhino's Cruise Through the Blues. San Francisco, California: Miller Freeman Books. p. 65. ISBN   0-87930-625-4.
  8. Savoy 1525
  9. 1 2 Dahl, Bill (1996). "Nappy Brown". In Erlewine, Michael (ed.). All Music Guide to the Blues . Miller Freeman Books. pp.  35–36. ISBN   0-87930-424-3.
  10. 1 2 3 Whitburn, Joel (1988). Top R&B Singles 1942–1988. Record Research. pp.  61, 81. ISBN   0-89820-068-7.
  11. 1 2 The Best of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years (Album notes). Ray Charles. Los Angeles: Rhino Records. 1994. p. 14.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. Tomko, Gene (March 2008). "The Right Time for Nappy Brown". Charlotte Magazine. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  13. The Right Time (Single notes). Ray Charles and the Raelettes. Atlantic Records. 1958. Side A record label. 45-2010.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. France, Lisa Respers (September 24, 2014). "'Cosby Show': Our 10 favorite moments". CNN.
  15. "The Cosby Show's 12 Best Musical Moments". Vulture. March 2013.
  16. TV Guide Book of Lists, Running Press, ISBN   978-0-7624-3007-9
  17. "CG: James Brown". Robert Christgau. Retrieved July 17, 2015.