Ann Peebles

Biography

Ann Lee Peebles (born April 27, 1947) is a retired American singer and songwriter who gained popularity for her Memphis soul albums of the 1970s while signed to Hi Records. Her most successful singles include "I Can't Stand the Rain," which she wrote with her husband Don Bryant and radio broadcaster Bernie Miller, and "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down×I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down1985 · Album · CompilationSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracksA1I Can't Stand the RainA2BewareA3A Love VibrationA4Doctor Love PowerA5Love Played a GameA6It Was JealousyA7What You Laid on MeA8Being Here With YouB1I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse DownB2When I'm in Your ArmsB3A Good Day for LovinB4Come to MamaB5Old Man With Young IdeasB6I Needed SomebodyB7If This Is Heaven." In 2014, she was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.

Biography

She was born in Kinloch, Missouri, the seventh child of eleven. As a child she began singing in the choir of her father's church and with the family's group, the Peebles Choir, who regularly opened shows for gospel stars including Mahalia Jackson and the Soul Stirrers featuring Sam Cooke. She was also influenced by R&B performers, including Muddy Waters, Mary Wells and Aretha Franklin.

She began performing in clubs in St. Louis, and in the mid-1960s joined a revue led by bandleader Oliver Sain. While visiting Memphis in 1968, she sang in a club with trumpeter Gene "Bowlegs" Miller, a popular local bandleader known for helping other musicians get their start in the Memphis music industry (including the members of the Hi Rhythm Section, who played on Peebles' recordings). Miller introduced her to Hi Records producer Willie Mitchell, who quickly offered her a recording contract.
Her first record, "Walk Away," written by Sain, reached the R&B chart in 1969, as did the follow-up, "Give Me Some Credit," and she released an album, This Is Ann Peebles×This Is Ann Peebles1969 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Give Me Some Credit2:552Crazy About You Baby2:353Make Me Yours2:504My Man He's a Lovin' Man2:145Solid Foundation2:076Chain of Fools2:457It's Your Thing2:328Walk Away3:079Rescue Me2:2710Won't You Try Me2:5511Steal Away3:1112Respect2:12. All her early records on Hi were produced by Mitchell and featured the signature sound of the Hi Rhythm Section and Memphis Horns. In 1970, her single "Part Time Love×Part Time Love1970 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Part Time Love2:55A2I’ll Get Along2:13A3I Still Love You3:25A4Make Me Yours2:57A5It’s Your Thing2:33B1Generation Gap Between Us2:25B2Crazy About You Baby2:43B3Give Me Some Credit3:09B4Steal Away3:16B5Solid Foundation2:13," a version of Little Johnny Taylor's 1963 hit, reached no. 7 on the R&B chart, and no.45 on the pop chart, and she began working with the Hi label's songwriter Don Bryant, whom she married in 1974. One of the first songs he wrote for her was "99 Pounds" in 1971.
She continued to have R&B hits in the early 1970s, including "I Pity the Fool," "Slipped, Tripped and Fell in Love," "Breaking Up Somebody's Home" (a Hot 100 hit in 1973 for Albert King and later recorded by Bette Midler), "Somebody's on Your Case," and "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down×I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down1985 · Album · CompilationSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracksA1I Can't Stand the RainA2BewareA3A Love VibrationA4Doctor Love PowerA5Love Played a GameA6It Was JealousyA7What You Laid on MeA8Being Here With YouB1I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse DownB2When I'm in Your ArmsB3A Good Day for LovinB4Come to MamaB5Old Man With Young IdeasB6I Needed SomebodyB7If This Is Heaven" (later a hit for Paul Young). She was also the only female singer on Hi to release a string of albums, including Straight from the Heart×Straight From the Heart1971 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Slipped, Tripped and Fell in Love2:29A2Trouble, Heartaches & Sadness2:40A3What You Laid on Me2:26A4How Strong Is a Woman3:01A5Somebody’s on Your Case2:26B1I Feel Like Breaking Up Somebody’s Home Tonight2:30B2I’ve Been There Before2:51B3I Pity the Fool2:59B499 Pounds2:17B5I Take What I Want2:29 and I Can't Stand the Rain, that contained many tracks that she co-wrote. The title track of the latter album, written by Peebles and Bryant with DJ Bernard Miller, was her biggest commercial success, reaching no. 6 on the R&B chart and no. 38 on the pop chart in 1973.
Although she continued to have hit R&B singles and to release albums on Hi, none matched the success of "I Can't Stand the Rain." Mitchell later said: "She was the girl with the big voice who could have really gone further ... But I don't think Ann spent enough time thinking about what she needed to do. I don't think she put as much energy into her career as a singer as some of the rest of these people."
After Hi Records closed in 1979, and with the rise of disco music, Peebles took a break from the music industry to spend more time with her family. She returned in 1989 with the album Call Me×Call Me1989 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 9 tracksA1Call Me3:41A2Buckle Up3:58A3Didn't We Do It3:58A4Your Well's Gone Die3:50A5One Bad Turn3:23B1I Found Somebody New3:35B2If You're Going To Leave3:55B3I Like a Man4:10B4I Won't Let Your Heart Roam3:42, again produced by Willie Mitchell and released on his own Waylo label. During the 1990s, she released albums on Rounder Records' Bullseye Blues subsidiary label. She continued to perform, and in 2006 she released the album Brand New Classics×Brand New Classics2006 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1I'll Get Along3:522You Keep Me Hanging On3:483I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down3:574I Want To Know What Love Is5:285Walk Away5:086I Still Love You5:467The Handwriting Is On The Wall4:158Love Vibration3:579I'm So Thankful5:1510Feel Like Breaking Up Somebody's Home6:2311Chase these blues away8:0912Miss You4:4013Tears In Heaven4:3214I Can't Stand The Rain3:5915Spread7:14, which consisted of re-recordings of some of her songs in an acoustic style. Peebles also joined Cyndi Lauper on a recording of "Rollin' and Tumblin'" on Lauper's 11th studio album, Memphis Blues. She gave up performing after a stroke in 2012.

In popular culture

Her name appears in the lyrics of the Le Tigre song "Hot Topic".