M
Delbert
McClinton
b: Nov. 4, 1940,
Lubbock, TX
A Texas blues institution, McClinton honed his musical chops to
razor-sharpness as a teenage harmonica man learning firsthand from blues legends
traveling through the area. His harp work on Bruce Channel's hit "Hey Baby", got
him on the big time circuit, making it over to tour England and eventually
giving harmonica lessons to a young John Lennon. Much behind the scenes work
throughout the 60's ensued with McClinton fronting the Rondell's, who hit the
Hot 100 with "If You Really Want Me To, I'll Go". He hit the charts again in the
70's with Glen Clark as Delbert and Glen. Around this period, McClinton's songs
started getting covered by country acts, Waylon Jennings and Emmylou Harris both
having hits with his material. The Blues Brothers used his "B-Movie", on their
first album and their hit movie. He has released idiosyncratic solo
efforts up to the present time and guested on albums with everyone from Roy
Buchanan to Bonnie Raitt. A Texas music treasure, we've not heard the last of
Delbert McClinton.
Amos
Milburn
b: Apr. 1, 1927,
Houston, TX
d: Jan. 3, 1980, Houston, TX
Boogie piano master Amos Milburn was
born in Houston, and he died there a short 52 years later. In between, he
pounded some of the most hellacious boogies of the post war era, usually
recording in Los Angeles for Aladdin Records and specializing in good natured
up-beat romps about booze and its effect (both positive and negative) that
proved massive hits during the immediate pre-rock
era.
The self taught 88s ace made a name for
himself as the "He-Man Martha Raye" around Houston before joining the Navy and
seeing overseas battle action in WWII. When he came out of the service,
Milburn played in various Lone Star niteries before meeting the woman who's
efforts would catapult him to
stardom.
Persistent manager Lola
Anne Cullun reportedly barged into Aladdin boss Eddie Mesner's hospital room,
toting a portable disc machine with Milburn's demo all cued up. The gambit
worked. Amos Milburn signed with Aladdin in 1946. His first date
included a thundering "Down the Road Apiece", that presaged the imminent rise of
rock and roll. But Milburn was capable of subtler charms also, crooning
mellow blues ballads in a Charles Brown influenced style (the two would later
become close friends, playing together
frequently).
The first of Milburn's 19 Top Ten
R&B smashes came in 1948 with his party classic "Chicken Shack Boogie",
which paced the charts and anointed his band with a worthy name (the Aladdin
Chicken Shackers, natch). A velvet smooth "Bewildered" displayed the cool
after hours side of Milburn's persona as it streaked up the charts later that
year, but it was rollicking horn driven material such as "Roomin' House Boogie"
and "Sax Shack Boogie" that Milburn was renowned for. Milburn's rumbling
88s influenced a variety of famous artists, notably Fats
Domino.
With the ascent of "Bad, Bad Whiskey"
to the peak of the charts in 1950, Milburn embarked on a string of similarly
boozy smashes: "Thinking and Drinking", "Let Me Go Home Whiskey", "One
Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer" (an inebriating round John Lee Hooker apparently
enjoyed!), and "Good, Good Whiskey" (his last hit in 1954). Alcoholism
later brought the pianist down hard, giving these numbers a grimly ironic twist
in retrospect. Milburn's national profile rated a series of appearances on
the Willie Bryant hosted mid-50's TV program Showtime at the
Apollo.
Aladdin stuck with Milburn long
after the hit ceased, dispatching him to New Orleans in 1956 to record with a
vaunted studio crew at Cosimo's. There he recut "Chicken Shack Boogie", in
a manner so torrid that it's impossible to believe it didn't hit (tenor saxist
Lee Allen and drummer Charles "Hungry" Williams blast with atomic power as
Milburn happily grunts along with his pounding piano solo). In 1957, he
left Aladdin for good.
Amos contributed a fine
offering to the R&B Yuletide canon in 1960 with his swinging "Christmas
(Comes But Once a Year)" for King. Berry Gordy gave Milburn a comeback
forum in 1962, issuing an album on Motown predominated by remakes of his old
hits that doesn't deserve its extreme rarity today (even Little Stevie Wonder
pitched in on harp for the sessions).
Nothing
could jump-start the pianist fading career by then, though. His health
deteriorated to the point that a string of strokes limited his mobility and his
left leg was eventually amputated. Not too long after, one of the greatest
pioneers in the history of R&B was dead.
Alex
Moore
b: Nov. 22, 1899,
Dallas, TX
d: Jan. 20, 1989, Dallas, TX
One of the last of the old-time Texas
barrelhouse pianist, Alex Moore was an institution in Dallas, his lifelong
home. A colorful entertainer with a poetic gift for rambling
improvisations, Moore had one of the longest recording careers in history (his
first sides for Columbia were made in 1929; his final session was in
1988). Yet it was hardly one of the most prolific, as there were usually
lengthy gaps between sessions. The spontaneous, autobiographical nature of
his latter-day recordings imbue his albums with a special
charm.
Moore began performing in the early
20's playing clubs and parties around his hometown of Dallas (he usually
performed under the name Whistlin' Alex). In 1929, he recorded his first
session, which were for Columbia Records. The sides didn't gain much
attention and Moore didn't record again until 1937, when he made a few records
for Decca. Between his first and second sessions, he continued to play
clubs in Dallas. The time span between his second session in 1937 and his
third was even longer that the time between his first and second. Moore
didn't record again until 1951, when RPM/Kent had him cut several songs.
Throughout the 40's and 50's Moore performed in clubs throughout Dallas,
occasionally venturing to other parts of
Texas.
Alex Moore's national break
coincided with the blues revival of the early 60's. Arhoolie Records
signed the pianist in 1960, and those records helped make him a national
name. For the rest of the 60's he played clubs and festivals in America,
as well as a handful of festival dates in Europe. Although he didn't make
many records in the 70's and 80's, Moore continued to perform until his death in
1989. The year before his death, he recorded a final session for Rounder
Records, which he released as the Wiggle Tail album.
Mike
Morgan
b: Nov. 30, 1959,
Dallas, TX
A Texas blues band, with twangy guitarist Mike Morgan and
vocalist/harpist Lee McBee prominently spotlighted, this Dallas quartet is set
squarely in the Lone Star blues tradition. Their 1990 debut for Black Top,
Raw and Ready, was followed by a more polished Mighty Fine Dancin'
the next year.