US soul vocalist Vicki Anderson Byrd, whose career was closely associated with that of James Brown, in whose band she sang in two spells in the 1960s and 1970s, died on Monday (3) at the age of 83. She was the wife of Bobby Byrd, another longtime collaborator of the Godfather of Soul, and the mother of another succesful soul vocalist, Carleen Anderson.
The news was confirmed by her goddaughter Margie Randle, who wrote on Facebook:
“A large part of my heart is missing my Godmother Vicki Anderson Byrd my bestie my sidekick. It’s going to be hard walking past your bedroom and you are not there the selfish part of me wanted you not to go but God was ready for his Angel to come home what a beautiful reunion with your husband Bobby Byrd and James Brown you Mommieo.”
Anderson was born Myra Barnes in Houston on November 21, 1939 and came to Brown’s attention in 1965, when she joined his band, replacing Anna King. She married Byrd shortly afterwards and stayed in the line-up until 1968, temporarily replaced by Marva Whitney, before rejoining for another three years from 1969.
Brown wrote in his autobiography that Anderson was the best singer ever to feature in his revue, which was praise indeed from someone with such famously exacting standards. Although she never made the Billboard R&B charts in her own right, she recorded a number of notable sides including 1970’s “A Message From The Soul Sisters,” released on King under her real name, some singles with Brown, and some answer records to his hits, including “Answer To Mother Popcorn (I Got A Mother For You)” and “Super Good (Answer To Super Bad).” Anderson featured prominently, alongside King, Whitney, Lyn Collins, and others, on the 1998 collection James Brown’s Funky Divas.
She won a new audience in later years with her own live show, and her profile increased further when her daughter Carleen, also born in Houston, emerged on London’s nu-soul and rare groove scene in the early 1990s. Her initial success was with the Young Disciples, notably with the ultra-funky “Apparently Nothin’,” after which she made a number of albums for Virgin, and others thereafter. Her career continues, including her current work on a “blended roots opera,” Meliot.
