Oscar Brown, Jr., was an artist years ahead of his time, blending blues, jazz, gospel, and R&B influences to become a singer/songwriter before the term even existed. Starting his musical career in the tumultuous early '60s, he chronicled social issues and African-American identity politics with a rare combination of humor and honesty. Songs like the bluesy, swinging "Work Song" and the evocative "Afro-Blue" saw Brown applying his lyrics to preexisting jazz instrumentals, transforming them into modern standards with his deft, poetic approach.