<back - AMOS MILBURN - House rent parties once used to be the rage whenever ghetto inhabitants decided to cover their weekly or monthly tab. But all that drinking, carousing, and letting those "good times roll", also provided plenty of raw material for multitudes of boogie-drenched numbers that dominated the R&B charts from the mid-40's to early 50's. And no other vocalist/piano player captured the mood of those carefree times as convincingly as did Amos Milburn. From 1948 until 1954, Milburn's sides ruled the R&B charts, and they burst the the lid open on crazy times, booze-drenched fun, and jive talkin'. Only Ruth Brown managed to attain the same level of popularity during this time period.

By the end of 1954, the tilt toward the teen market quickly rendered the 'Rockin' the Blues' style of booze 'n boogie into an artifact. Such seminal Rock n' Rollers as Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, and Dr.John have patterned much of their act after Milburn. Bad Bad Whiskey, Thinkin' and Drinkin', Let's Have A Party, and Chicken Shack Boogie are open invitations to letting your hair down and letting it all hang out.  Born in Houston in 1923, Amos Milburn quickly found his niche by emulating the likes of Louis Jordan, Wynonie Harris, Ivory Joe Hunter, and especially Charles Brown. Upon getting signed to Eddie Mesner's Aladdin Records in 1946, Amos moved to the West Coast, and had his first hit with the salacious Blues After Midnite. Featuring only guitar, bass, and drums, those first releases didn't quite reflect the style Amos Milburn would soon be identified with. The exception was the full-tilt-boogie 'Down The Road Apiece', a thunderous take on Will Bradley's 1941 side. When ace arranger Maxwell Davis topped up the excitement with tenor sax, that patented sound would solidly entice the R&B folks, starting with 1948's Chicken Shack Boogie. 1949 continued the wave of success as Hold Me Baby, In The Middle of the Night, Empty Arm Blues, and Real Pretty Mama Blues all made the top of the charts. But 1950 would change everything! The cause was a Maxwell Davis instrumental titled "Bristol Drive" which Amos adapted by blending in some liquid lyrics. Bad Bad Whiskey not only became one of the most enduring "Blues-in-a-bottle" songs, but it also prompted a cavalcade of similarly themed releases, such as Thinkin' and Drinkin' (1952), Let Me Go Home Whiskey (1953), One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer (1953), and Good Good Whiskey (1954). Aladdin Records stuck with Amos Milburn until 1958, but even a hot re-working of Chicken Shack Boogie didn't make a commercial dent. Nor would a well-reviewed 1962 album on Motown kickstart his ebbing career.  Johnny Otis brought him out of retirement in the mid-70's on a Blue Spectrum LP. Amos would pass away on January 3, 1980. Amos Milburn never held back on a single note, and his passionate full-fisted love affair with music went hand-in-hand with his approach to life. 
-Gary Tate/LivinBlues   MP3- Down the Road Apiece | Bad Bad Whiskey