BARBARA LYNN

Barbara Lynn is a songwriter and left-handed guitarist who often straddles the line between blues and Southern soul.

She was born Barbara Lynn Ozen in Beaumont, Texas, on January 16, 1942. She played piano as a child but switched to the guitar, which she played left-handed. Her influences included bluesmen like Jimmy Reed and Guitar Slim, and female rock & roll stars like Brenda Lee and Connie Francis. After winning a number of local talent shows, she formed an all-female band called Bobbie Lynn & Her Idols.

She began to perform (underage) in local clubs and came to the attention of singer Joe Barry (“I’m a Fool to Care,” 1961). He introduced Lynn to producer Huey P. Meaux, who ran SugarHill Recording Studios and several record labels in New Orleans. Meaux and Lynn co-wrote her debut single, “You’ll Lose a Good Thing.” She recorded it at Cosimo Matassa’s J&M studio in New Orleans. The session players included Mac Rebennack (Dr. John). Released on Jamie Records, it became a solid smash, hitting #1 on the Billboard Rhythm & Blues chart and #8 pop in the late summer of 1962.

Soon, Barbara Lynn was touring with likes of Gladys Knight & The Pips, Jackie Wilson, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Little Stevie Wonder, Dionne Warwick, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, James Brown, Carla Thomas, Marvin Gaye, Ike & Tina Turner, and B.B. King. She also appeared twice on Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand.” In 1965, the Rolling Stones covered Lynn’s “Oh Baby (We’ve Got a Good Thing Going)” on their LP,  Out of Our Heads (A/K/A Rolling Stones Now!).

In 1966, Lynn signed with Meaux’s Tribe label and recorded “You Left the Water Running.” It made the lower rungs of the R&B chart and was later recorded by the likes Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, and Maurice & Mac. A year later, she signed with Atlantic and recorded an album, Here Is Barbara Lynn, in 1968. A single from it, “This Is the Thanks I Get,” made the R&B top forty. A second single, “(Until Then) I’ll Suffer,” was issued in 1971 and became Lynn’s final chart entry.

Barbara Lynn got married in 1970 and would have three children. This, and her dissatisfaction with her label’s lack of promotion, caused Lynn to largely retire from the music business. However, while living in Los Angeles, she would occasionally appear in local clubs. She also put out several singles on small labels like Jetstream.

In 1975, Freddy Fender’s remake of “You’ll Lose a Good Thing” became a #1 Country hit and reached #32 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In 1984, Lynn toured Japan and recorded a live album, You Don’t Have to Go. She returned to recording after the death of her husband. Lynn also moved back to her hometown of Beaumont, Texas, where her mother still lived. In 1994, she recorded So Good, her first album in 20+ years, and would record several more in the years to come.

In 1999, Barbara Lynn received a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm & Blues Foundation. She was also a 2018 recipient of the National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Rock critic Dave Marsh included “You’ll Lose a Good Thing” in his 1989 book, The Heart of Rock and Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.

Charted singles:

“You’ll Lose a Good Thing” (1962) R&B #1 (3 weeks), Pop #8
“Second Fiddle Girl” (1962) Pop #63
“You’re Gonna Need Me” (1962) R&B #13, Pop #65
“Don’t Be Cruel” (1963) Pop #93
“To Love Or Not to Love” (1963) Pop #135
“(I Cried at) Laura’s Wedding” (1963) Pop #68
“Oh! Baby (We Got a Good Thing Goin’)” (1964) R&B #19, Pop #69
“Don’t Spread It Around” (1964) R&B #35, Pop #93
“It’s Better to Have It” (1965) R&B #26, Pop #95
“I’m a Good Woman” (1965) Pop #129
“You Left the Water Running” (1966) R&B #42, Pop #110
“This Is the Thanks I Get” (1968) R&B #39, Pop #65
“(Until Then) I’ll Suffer” (1971) R&B #31