Robert Brown (July 15, 1910 – November 6, 1966), known professionally as Washboard Sam, was an American blues singer and musician.
Born in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, and reputedly the half-brother of Big Bill Broonzy, Brown moved to Memphis, Tennessee in the 1920s, performing as a street musician with Sleepy John Estes and Hammie Nixon. He then moved to Chicago in 1932, performing regularly with Broonzy, and appearing with him and other musicians including Memphis Slim and Tampa Red on innumerable recording sessions for Lester Melrose of Bluebird Records.
In 1935 he began recording in his own right for both Bluebird and Vocalion Records, becoming one of the most popular Chicago blues performers of the late 1930s and 1940s, selling numerous records and playing to packed audiences. Between 1935 and 1949 he recorded over 160 sides, including such popular numbers as "Mama Don't Allow", "Back Door" and "Diggin' My Potatoes." His strong voice and talent for creating new songs overcame his stylistic limitations.
By the 1950s, his audience began to shrink, largely because he had difficulty adapting to the new electric blues. His final recording session for RCA Victor was held in 1949, he retired from music for several years, and became a Chicago police officer. He recorded a session in 1953 with Broonzy and Memphis Slim, and in 1959 Samuel Charters included his "I've Been Treated Wrong" on the compilation The Country Blues for Folkways Records. Brown made a modest but short-lived comeback as a live performer in the early 1960s. He died of heart disease in Chicago, in November 1966, and was buried in an unmarked grave at the Washington Memory Gardens Cemetery in Homewood, Illinois.
A September 18, 2009 concert held by Executive Producer Steve Salter of the Killer Blues organization raised monies to place a headstone on Washboard Sam's grave. The show was a success and a headstone was placed in October 2009. The concert was held at the historic Howmet Playhouse Theater in Whitehall, Michigan and was recorded by Vinyl Wall Productions and filmed for television broadcast in the mid-Michigan area by a television crew from Central Michigan University. The concert featured musical artists Washboard Jo, R.B. and Co. and was headlined by the Big House Blues Band.
Volume 1
01. Mama Don't Allow No.1
02. Jesse James Blues
03. Who Pumped The Wind In My Doughnut
04. Mama Don't Allow No. 2
05. You Done Tore Your Playhouse Down
06. Don't 'Low
07. Don't Tear My Clothes
08. I'm A Prowlin' Groundhog
09. Give Me Lovin'
10. Crazy About Nancy Jane
11. Cherry Hill Blues
12. Levee Blues
13. Dirty Mother For You
14. Good Liquor
15. Mixed Up Blues (Take 1)
16. Mixed Up Blues (Take 2)
17. Pains In My Heart
18. I Love All My Woman
19. Out With The Wrong Woman
20. Come On In
21. Big Woman
22. Nashville, Tennessee
23. Razor Cuttin' Man
Volume 2
01. Easy Ridin' Mama
02. Big Boat
03. Back Door
04. We Gonna Move
05. Low Down Woman
06. I Drink Good Whiskey
07. Lowland Blues
08. I'm on My Way Blues
09. Washboard's Barrel House Song
10. Want to Woogie Some More
11. Ladies' Man
12. You Got to Take It
13. Beer Garden Blues
14. Where Were You Last Night?
15. Somebody's Got to Go
16. Gonna Be Some Walkin' Done
17. Second Story Man
18. Don't Leave Me Here
19. My Woman's a Sender
20. Towboat Blues
21. Mountain Blues
22. Phantom Black Snake
23. Yellow, Black and Brown
Volume 3
01. It's Too Late Now
02. Barbecue
03. Down At The Old Village Store
04. The Gal I Love
05. Bucket's Got A Hole In It
06. Save It For Me
07. Serve It Right
08. Cruel Treatment
09. Jumpin' Rooster
10. I'm Gonna Keep My Hair Parted
11. Sophisticated Mama
12. Policy Writer's Blues
13. I'm Gonna Pay
14. When My Love Changed
15. You Waited Too Long
16. Gonna Kill My Baby
17. Suspicious Blues
18. Walkin' In My Sleep
19. Washboard Swing
20. Hand Reader Blues
21. Rack 'Em Back
22. I'll Be Up Someday
23. Warehouse Blues
24. CCC Blues
Volume 4
01. This Time Is My Time
02. Booker T Blues
03. Good Old Easy Street
04. I Believe I'll Make A Change
05. Wasn't He Bad
06. Diggin' My Potatoes
07. I Love My Baby
08. That Will Get It
09. Has My Gal Been Here
10. Somebody Changed That Lock On My Door
11. Don't Fool With Me
12. Jersey Cow Blues
13. So Early In The Morning
14. Beauty Spot
15. We Gonna Do Some Rug Cuttin'
16. Block And Tackle
17. Going Back To Arkansas
18. Louise
19. I Won't Be Sober Long
20. Oh Babe
21. How Can I Play Fair
22. She Fooled Me
23. Sun Gonna Shine In My Door
24. Beale Street Sheik
Volume 5
01. Why Did You Do That To Me?
02. Digging My Potatoes-No. 2
03. Chiselin' Blues
04. Morning Dove Blues
05. Good Time Tonight
06. Dissatisfied Blues
07. I'm Going To St. Louis
08. Greyhound Bus
09. Oh Joe
10. Just Got To Hold You
11. Yes I Got Your Woman
12. Good Luck Blues
13. Ain't You Comin' Out Tonight
14. Come On Back
15. Just To Prove I Love You
16. Every Tub Stands On Its Own Bottom
17. She's Makin' A Fool Out Of Me
18. She's A Bad Luck Woman
19. Little Leg Woman
20. She's All In My Life
21. He's A Creepin' Man
22. I Can Beat You Playing That Hand
23. Down At The Bad Man's Hall
24. Traveling Man
Volume 6
01. Life Is Just a Book
02. I'm Not the Lad
03. My Feet Jumped Salty
04. Flying Crow Blues
05. Levee Camp Blues
06. I'm Feeling Low Down
07. Brown and Yellow Woman Blues
08. She Belongs to the Devil
09. Let Me Play Your Vendor
10. Broadcast Blues
11. Gonna Hit the Highway
12. I've Been Treated Wrong
13. Evil Blues
14. Get Down Brother
15. Lover's Lane Blues
16. You Stole My Love
17. Rockin' My Blues Away
18. Good Old Cabbage Greens
19. River Hip Mama
20. Do That Shake Dance
21. How Can You Love Me
22. Stop and Fix It
23. Don't Have to Sing the Blues
24. Red River Dam Blues
Volume 7
01. Down South Woman Blues
02. Ain't That a Shame
03. Laid My Cards on the Table
04. I Get the Blues at Bedtime
05. You Can't Make the Grade
06. You Can't Make the Grade
07. I Just Couldn't Help It
08. Soap and Water Blues
09. Facing Life
10. No Special Rider Blues
11. Ramblin' With That Woman
12. Love Me or Let Me Be
13. She's Just My Size
14. You Know How I Feel
15. Fool About That Woman
16. Dollar Is Your Best Friend
17. No. 1 Drunkard
18. I'm Just Tired
19. Maybe You Love Me
20. Nothing in Rambling
21. You Said You Loved Me
22. Market Street Swing
23. Motherless Child Blues
24. Gamblin' Man
