Rabbit Brown

Richard "Rabbit" Brown was an American blues guitarist and composer. His music has been characterized as a mixture of blues, pop songs, and original topical ballads. He recorded six sides for Victor Records on March 11, 1927, one of which, "James Alley", is included in the 1952 Anthology of American Folk Music and has been covered by Bob Dylan, among others.

The rock critic Greil Marcus has called Brown's recording of "James Alley" "the greatest recording ever made."

Biography Brown was probably born around 1880 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He certainly lived in New Orleans from his youth on. He eventually moved to the Battlefield, a rough district of the city, where several events inspired some of the songs he later wrote. He mainly performed at nightclubs and on the street. It was noted that Brown sang "in a gritty voice and playing fluent guitar that incorporated flamenco runs, string snapping and high speed bass runs; he also took tourists for rowboat rides on Lake Ponchartrain".

Including the recording also selected for the Anthology of American Folk Music, five of Brown's six known recordings appear on the compilation album, The Greatest Songsters: Complete Works (1927–1929).