Barnwell
He was raised in Augusta, Georgia, across the Savannah River.
Country land with no marked site: named here, not mapped.
In person · Barnwell · Augusta · Toccoa · Cincinnati · Harlem · Boston · Kinshasa
James Brown
Curtain up: James Brown with the Famous Flames and his orchestra.
On stage: ABC’s Music Scene, 1969 (ABC Television · public domain); the Famous Flames and the James Brown Orchestra, 1960s press photograph (Universal Attractions · public domain); Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, 24 October 1970 (Jambalaya yearbook · public domain).
1933–1955
The red clay.
He was born on 3 May 1933 in a country shack outside Barnwell, South Carolina. He spends most of his youth in Augusta in the care of his Aunt Honey, through the Depression and the war. At 13 he and two friends form the Cremona Trio.
Toccoa
He was paroled in Toccoa in 1952, sponsored by the local Byrd family. Bobby Byrd led the Toccoa group that became the Flames; it began as the Gospel Starlighters, or the Avons.
A Toccoa man, Barry Trimier, managed the group. By 1955, with Clint Brantley booking them, they were calling themselves the Flames.
A small town in the northeast Georgia hills. No single site is marked, so the town is named here and not mapped.
Sources
“Please Please Please”, every night
The cape routine.
He hires Danny Ray as his valet; Ray becomes the show’s emcee, and the man with the cape. Ray’s own account was that it began as a joke: his job was to hand over a towel when Brown was soaked. Run the routine: each time he throws the cape off, he comes back somewhere new.
He is standing. Put him on his knees. Comeback 1 of 6 is next.
- 1· · ·
- 2· · ·
- 3· · ·
- 4· · ·
- 5· · ·
- 6· · ·
Danny Ray
He stayed for 46 years, until Brown’s death in 2006. He looked after the wardrobe and picked the cape to match each night’s outfit; when Brown threw it off, Ray picked it up and stood by.
Sources
Harlem · 19–25 October 1962
A week at the Apollo, on his own money.
He booked a remote recording truck to tape his shows here from 19 to 25 October 1962.
The Apollo says the record was made at his own expense, and it was a big commercial and critical success.
In 2006 he lay in state on the Apollo stage, and tens of thousands came to pay their respects.
Historic tours run Monday and Wednesday at 11am and 1pm and Saturday at 11am, $17, booked ahead. The doors are closed for renovation for now, so check first.
Sources
Apollo Theater
Apollo historic tour
253 West 125th Street, Harlem · Mon & Wed 11am and 1pm, Sat 11am · $17 · book ahead
Billy “Mr. Apollo” Mitchell tells the stories of the stars who played the theatre, James Brown among them. The doors are closed for renovation for now, so check dates when you book.
Book a tour
Cincinnati · King Records
Give him the one.
Bootsy Collins, in the band in the early 1970s, is told that if he gives Brown the one, he can play everything else. The one is the first beat of the bar. Start the band, and hit it only when the 1 lights up: each clean hit lands the next King Records moment.
Beat 1 of 4. Nothing landed yet. 0/4 on the one.
- —Cincinnati
- —The Parker brothers
- —“Funky Drummer”
- —The one
King Records, Brewster Avenue
The Flames tape a spare first version of “Please Please Please” in the basement of radio station WIBB in Macon. The Flames recorded for King in Cincinnati on Saturday 4 February 1956, with the King house band.
Bobby Byrd later ran quality control at King’s pressing plant. The site became a city landmark in 2015 and joined the National Register of Historic Places in 2022. The city owns the buildings; a museum, learning centre and performance space are planned.
An empty building with a marker out front: see it from the pavement on Brewster Avenue.
Sources
Maceo Parker
Maceo and Melvin Parker, from Kinston, North Carolina, join the band. Maceo and Melvin Parker walk out, with other musicians.
Sources
Boston Garden
5 April 1968
On 5 April 1968, the day after Martin Luther King Jr. was killed in Memphis, he played the Boston Garden.
Councillor Thomas Atkins persuaded Mayor Kevin White to let the show go ahead, and WGBH broadcast it live.
About 2,000 people were in the hall; many more watched on television.
In WGBH’s footage, Atkins and Brown bring on the mayor, who asks the crowd to honour King.
The Garden opened in 1928, closed in 1995 and was demolished in 1998. The Garden is gone. Take the Orange or Green Line to North Station; TD Garden stands behind the old site.
Sources
Kinshasa, Zaire · now the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The fight moved. The music did not.
The fightSeptember30 October 1974Foreman injured
The festival22–24 September 1974Kept its dates
Zaire 74 ran from 22 to 24 September 1974 at the 20th of May Stadium in Kinshasa, now the Stade Tata Raphaël.
Hugh Masekela and Stewart Levine organised it to go with the Ali–Foreman fight. Foreman was injured, so the fight moved to 30 October; the festival kept its dates.
He headlined, closing with “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud”.
A working football stadium, open on match days. Check current travel advice before planning a trip.
Sources
Home: downtown Augusta
The plinth.
2006: The statue, in tributes.
A life-size statue of him stood downtown on Broad Street, between 8th Street and James Brown Boulevard. It was put up while he was alive.
A building site for now: the statue is in store until the new park opens. Downtown works can make the area hard to reach.
Sources
745 Broad Street, Augusta, Georgia
The Imperial Theatre, Broad Street
He and his band, the Soul Generals, rehearsed here before leaving on world tours.
Every Christmas he gave toys to children in need here, a tradition still kept.
A working theatre: see a show, or call the box office on 706 722 8341 (Tuesday to Friday, 10am–4pm).
Sources
560 Reynolds Street, Augusta, Georgia
Augusta Museum of History
Its Godfather of Soul exhibition shows his stage costumes from the 1960s on, and a “King of Soul” crown he wore in the 1950s.
It also has the programmes from his three memorial services, in New York, Augusta and South Carolina.
Open Thursday to Saturday 10am–5pm and Sunday 1–5pm; adults $7. Call 706 722 8454.
Sources
984 Broad Street, Augusta, Georgia
Soul Bar, Broad Street
A funk and music bar since 1995, with walls covered in James Brown memorabilia.
Its co-owner, DJ Coco Rubio, tells his memories of Brown on the city’s James Brown Journey audio tour.
A working bar in the 900 block of Broad Street. Downtown works can make it hard to reach.
Sources
7th Street, Augusta, Georgia
The James Brown Arena site
More than 8,000 mourners came to a memorial service at the arena after his death in 2006.
Razing of the old arena began in 2024; a new 10,000-seat arena is being built.
A construction site: the old arena is gone and a new one is being built.
Sources
Augusta & Co. (Visit Augusta)
The James Brown Journey
Downtown Augusta · Free · open every day · (706) 849-3246
A free self-guided walk round his Augusta: the Imperial, the arena, the museum, the statue site, the Soul Bar and more, with a QR code at each stop for audio from his friends and family.
Start the walk
Augusta Museum of History
Augusta Museum of History
560 Reynolds Street, Augusta · Thu–Sat 10am–5pm, Sun 1–5pm · adults $7
The Godfather of Soul exhibition: stage costumes, a 1950s crown, family photographs, and concert footage.
Plan a visitDecember 2006
The last cape.
He dies on Christmas morning, after a brief illness, and lies in state on the Apollo stage. At his funeral, Danny Ray drapes a sequined cape over him.
He is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, one of its first three inductees.
Sources
Where it is now
9 places you can visit, from Augusta to Kinshasa. Barnwell and Toccoa have no marked site, so they are named and not mapped; the Boston Garden and the old arena are gone.
Pins mark public places; private homes are named but not pinned.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: building · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A working theatre: see a show, or call the box office on 706 722 8341 (Tuesday to Friday, 10am–4pm).
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: site · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A building site for now: the statue is in store until the new park opens. Downtown works can make the area hard to reach.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: building · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. Open Thursday to Saturday 10am–5pm and Sunday 1–5pm; adults $7. Call 706 722 8454.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: building · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A working bar in the 900 block of Broad Street. Downtown works can make it hard to reach.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: site · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A construction site: the old arena is gone and a new one is being built.
The Imperial Theatre, Broad Street, Augusta, in 2016. DXR · CC BY-SA 4.0 745 Broad Street, Augusta, Georgia
The Imperial Theatre, Broad Street
He and his band, the Soul Generals, rehearsed here before leaving on world tours.
A working theatre: see a show, or call the box office on 706 722 8341 (Tuesday to Friday, 10am–4pm).
Sources
The James Brown statue on Broad Street, Augusta, in February 2006. Sir Mildred Pierce · CC BY 2.0 Broad Street median, in front of the Augusta Common, Augusta, Georgia
The statue site, Broad Street
A life-size statue of him stood downtown on Broad Street, between 8th Street and James Brown Boulevard.
A building site for now: the statue is in store until the new park opens. Downtown works can make the area hard to reach.
Sources
The Augusta Museum of History, Reynolds Street, in 2020. LittleT889 · CC BY-SA 4.0 560 Reynolds Street, Augusta, Georgia
Augusta Museum of History
Its Godfather of Soul exhibition shows his stage costumes from the 1960s on, and a “King of Soul” crown he wore in the 1950s.
Open Thursday to Saturday 10am–5pm and Sunday 1–5pm; adults $7. Call 706 722 8454.
Sources
Broad Street at 10th Street, Augusta, in 2016. DXR · CC BY-SA 4.0 984 Broad Street, Augusta, Georgia
Soul Bar, Broad Street
A funk and music bar since 1995, with walls covered in James Brown memorabilia.
A working bar in the 900 block of Broad Street. Downtown works can make it hard to reach.
Sources
The James Brown Arena, Augusta, in 2017, before it was demolished. Thomson200 · CC0 7th Street, Augusta, Georgia
The James Brown Arena site
More than 8,000 mourners came to a memorial service at the arena after his death in 2006.
A construction site: the old arena is gone and a new one is being built.
Sources
Stay
A room in Augusta.
A historic hotel a short drive from Broad Street.
The Partridge Inn (Curio Collection by Hilton)
The Partridge Inn, Augusta
Augusta, Georgia · 2110 Walton Way · +1 706 737 8888 · see the site for rates
A historic hotel on Walton Way, a short drive from the Broad Street sites. Pictured: Broad Street at 10th Street, near the Soul Bar.
Check roomsGo there
Stand where it happened.
A free walk round his Augusta, the museum, the Apollo tour, and walks in Harlem and Boston.
Augusta & Co. (Visit Augusta)
The James Brown Journey
Downtown Augusta · Free · open every day · (706) 849-3246
A free self-guided walk round his Augusta: the Imperial, the arena, the museum, the statue site, the Soul Bar and more, with a QR code at each stop for audio from his friends and family.
Start the walkAugusta Museum of History
Augusta Museum of History
560 Reynolds Street, Augusta · Thu–Sat 10am–5pm, Sun 1–5pm · adults $7
The Godfather of Soul exhibition: stage costumes, a 1950s crown, family photographs, and concert footage.
Plan a visitApollo Theater
Apollo historic tour
253 West 125th Street, Harlem · Mon & Wed 11am and 1pm, Sat 11am · $17 · book ahead
Billy “Mr. Apollo” Mitchell tells the stories of the stars who played the theatre, James Brown among them. The doors are closed for renovation for now, so check dates when you book.
Book a tour
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Harlem music history tours
Harlem, New York
Live marketplace results for Harlem walking tours. Check each itinerary for the stops it really makes.
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Boston walking tours
Boston
Live marketplace results for Boston history walks. None is about the 1968 concert; check each itinerary for the stops it really makes.
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Compare toursWhat’s on
Nights at the Imperial.
Two evenings at the theatre where he rehearsed.
Checking current event dates…
Take it home
Two books and two records.
A search for the man, the full life, the Apollo record and the King single.
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Kill ’Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul
James McBride
A novelist goes looking for the man, through the people who knew him.
Find the book
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The One: The Life and Music of James Brown
RJ Smith
The full life, and the beat it is named after.
Find the book
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Live at the Apollo
James Brown and the Famous Flames · LP, 1963
Taped at 253 West 125th Street in October 1962.
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Funky Drummer
James Brown · 7" single, King, 1970
Cut in the King studio on Brewster Avenue, with Clyde Stubblefield.
Live marketplace search · listings and condition change
Find a copyDates, prices, rooms and stock change: confirm with the provider before you travel or buy. A stay or tour is described as a filming location only where the card says so.
The full record
Every place and moment behind this page, with sources.
11 of 11 places · 21 of 21 Moments
Outside Barnwell, South Carolina
Barnwell, South Carolina
Barnwell
He is born in a country shack outside Barnwell, South Carolina.
Toccoa, Georgia
Toccoa, Stephens County, Georgia
Toccoa
He is paroled in Toccoa, sponsored by the Byrd family.
The Gospel Starlighters
He starts his professional career with the Gospel Starlighters, later the Flames.
The Imperial Theatre, Broad Street
745 Broad Street, Augusta, Georgia
Aunt Honey
He spends most of his youth in Augusta in the care of his Aunt Honey, through the Depression and the war.
The Cremona Trio
At 13 he and two friends form the Cremona Trio.
Two radio stations
He buys WJBE in Knoxville, Tennessee, and WRDW in Augusta.
The statue site, Broad Street
Broad Street median, in front of the Augusta Common, Augusta, Georgia
Into store
The Broad Street statue is taken down and stored at the museum while a park is built around its spot.
Augusta Museum of History
560 Reynolds Street, Augusta, Georgia
The Hall of Fame
He is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, one of its first three inductees.
Soul Bar, Broad Street
984 Broad Street, Augusta, Georgia
The James Brown Arena site
7th Street, Augusta, Georgia
The arena
More than 8,000 mourners come to his memorial service at the arena in Augusta.
The last cape
At his funeral, Danny Ray drapes a sequined cape over him.
King Records, Brewster Avenue
1540 Brewster Avenue, Evanston, Cincinnati, Ohio
WIBB, Macon
The Flames tape a spare first version of “Please Please Please” in the basement of radio station WIBB in Macon.
Cincinnati
The Flames record for King in Cincinnati with the King house band.
The Parker brothers
Maceo and Melvin Parker, from Kinston, North Carolina, join the band.
“Funky Drummer”
“Funky Drummer”, with Clyde Stubblefield, is recorded in the King studio.
The walkout
Maceo and Melvin Parker walk out, with other musicians.
The one
Bootsy Collins, in the band in the early 1970s, is told that if he gives Brown the one, he can play everything else.
The Apollo Theater, Harlem
253 West 125th Street, Harlem, New York
Danny Ray
He hires Danny Ray as his valet; Ray becomes the show’s emcee, and the man with the cape.
Live at the Apollo
He tapes a week of shows at the Apollo, at his own expense.
Christmas morning
He dies on Christmas morning, after a brief illness, and lies in state on the Apollo stage.
The Boston Garden site, Causeway Street
Causeway Street, West End, Boston
Boston
The night after Dr King is killed, he plays the Boston Garden and WGBH broadcasts it live.
Stade Tata Raphaël, Kinshasa
Boulevard Sendwe, Kalamu, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Zaire 74
He headlines three nights of music at the 20th of May Stadium in Kinshasa.