Teardrops from My Eyes

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Teardrops from My Eyes is a catchy rhythm and blues song written by Rudy Toombs. Ruth Brown recorded it for Atlantic Records in New York City in September 1950 and released it in October. It became Billboard's No. 1 R&B hit for 11 weeks (non-consecutive) and was Atlantic's first release on the new 45 rpm format. The record helped Brown earn the nickname "Miss Rhythm" and she quickly became a leading figure in R&B. It was Brown's first of five number-one R&B hits.

Before this song, Brown was mainly seen as a torch singer. When Toombs presented the song to her, she was hesitant because its rhythm was different from the ballads she usually sang. The faster tempo and the four-beat backbeat puzzled her at first, but Ahmet Ertegün encouraged her to give it a try, and he was right. The recording includes a tenor sax solo by Budd Johnson.

Atlantic often used a strategy of turning uptown, refined singers into funkier versions, bridging older, powerful black musical traditions with newer styles. Ertegün believed this helped popularize black music and broaden its appeal.