Rex Foundation

The Rex Foundation established the Ralph J. Gleason Award in 1986 for outstanding contributions to culture. The award is named in memory of the pioneering jazz and pop music journalist Ralph J. Gleason (1917-1975) who was a major figure in the advancement of creative music in America. As a critic for the San Francisco Chronicle and Down Beat, and a founding editor of Rolling Stone, Gleason displayed an openness to new music and new ideas that transcended differences between generations and styles. The Rex Foundation hopes to keep his legacy alive by presenting the award bearing his name to those who exemplify the qualities of talent, vision and innovation that Ralph so tirelessly supported.

Pianist/singer/composer Charles Brown is a true American cultural treasure, one of the living legends of the blues. Born in Texas, but a resident of California for many years, Brown was one of the key innovators of the West Coast Blues style, which fused the influence of such great Texas bluesmen like T-Bone Walker with a sophisticated, jazz-flavored sensibility. His recordings for the Atlas, Modern, Exclusive and Aladdin labels kept him on the Rhythm and Blues charts with remarkable consistency during the 1940s and 50s. Brown's compositions, including "Drifting Blues," "Black Night" and "Fool's Paradise" have become blues standards, and his "Merry Christmas Baby" is a holiday classic which has been recorded by such artists as Otis Redding and Bruce Springsteen.

In 1988 Charles Brown became one of the first recipients of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's lifetime achievement awards, and he has won the blues world's most prestigious honor, the W.C. Handy award, numerous times in a variety of categories, including Best Vocalist, Best Pianist and Album Of The Year.

In 1997, Charles Brown was also presented with the Heritage Fellowship Award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Rex Foundation is honored to present Charles Brown with the 1997 Ralph J. Gleason Award.