Critic's Review
arwulf arwulf, All Music Guide
Amos Milburn was born in Houston, TX, on April 1, 1927. After serving in the Navy during the Second World War, the young pianist began performing publicly in a style derived directly from his heroes Albert Ammons and Pete Johnson. While leading a small band at San Antonio's Keyhole Club, Milburn was discovered by Lola Anne Cullum, a talent scout working for the Los Angeles-based Aladdin record label. Soon after hiring Milburn, Cullum would also sign and record a pair of fine bluesmen from Houston, Wilson "Thunder" Smith and Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins. Milburn was only 19 years old when he made his first records. This compilation documents everything he recorded between September 1946 and October 1947. As the musicians in his regular working band were considered too green to appear on records, Milburn was provided with a small backing ensemble composed of players whose names have since been forgotten, although tenor saxophonist Maxwell Davis was in charge of the group and is believed to have performed on the sides cut in 1947. The slow, soulful, and bluesy instrumental "Real Gone" is the greatest artistic achievement of the entire album. All of this action predates Milburn's big hit of 1948, "Chicken Shack Boogie," and serves as a fascinating prelude to this pianist's later work and all of the hot music he went on to inspire others to create.
