Charles Louis Brown (August 22, 1936 – May 16, 2012) was an American guitarist, bandleader, and singer known as "The Godfather of Go-Go".

The song "Ashley's Roachclip" from the 1974 album Salt of the Earth by Brown's band The Soul Searchers[4] contains a drum break, sampled countless times in various other tracks.

[11] When Brown completed his sentence, he moved back to Washington, D.C., and worked as a truck driver, a bricklayer, and a sparring partner at multiple boxing gyms.

[11] Brown's musical career began in the 1960s, playing guitar with many jazz musicians and soul singer Jerry Butler, joining Los Latinos in 1965.

Brown also recorded go-go covers of early jazz and blues songs, such as "Go-Go Swing", "Harlem Nocturne", Duke Ellington's "It Don't Mean a Thing If Ain't Got That Swing", "Moody's Mood For Love", Johnny Mercer's "Midnight Sun", Louis Jordan's "Run Joe", and T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday".

"Bustin' Loose" has been adopted by the Washington Nationals baseball team as its home run celebration song and was interpolated by Nelly for his 2002 number one hit "Hot in Herre."

He received his first Grammy Award nomination in 2011 for Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals for "Love" (with Jill Scott and Marcus Miller), from the album We Got This.

The Soul Rebels Brass Band, Rare Essence and Slick Rick performed a tribute concert and collaborated on June 21, 2012, in Washington, D.C., at the historic Howard Theatre which re-opened in April 2012.

On September 4, 2011, Brown was honored by the National Symphony Orchestra, as the NSO paid tribute to Legends of Washington Music Labor Day concert - honoring Brown's music, as well as Duke Ellington and John Philip Sousa - with a free concert on the West Lawn of the Capitol.