Little Milton (Born 07/09/1934, Died 04/08/2005)

Milton Campbell made his first serious impact when recording for Chess/Checker in the mid to late 60s, having signed to the label in 1961.

One of the great artists who effortlessly adapted the blues form to the influence of soul in many of his recordings, he easily straddles both camps, but his guitar playing certainly keeps him within the blues spectrum. One of the Shades favourites, probably because he was/is an R&B vocal stylist in the mould of all time hero Bobby 'Blue' Bland. He recorded several well known compositions for Checker, including 'Who's Cheating Who?', 'Grits Ain't Groceries' and 'We're Gonna Make It'. He also recorded compositions made famous by other artists, such as 'Sweet Sixteen' (B.B. King), 'Stormy Monday' (T-Bone Walker) and 'Blind Man' (Bobby Bland) which, it has to be said, were every bit as strong as the originals. He proved himself capable of writing a good blues song as well, penning and recording 'Life Is Like That'. There was a Chess Double CD compilation around called "Welcome To The Club - The Essential Chess Recordings" but that appears to be long gone in the UK, as does the Charly R&B Masters CD "Little Milton - Tending His Roots" which was an excellent 20 track overview and is a heartily recommended purchase. The "Complete Checker Hit Singles" was available at a bargain price but seems to have now been deleted - however, hunt down one of these compilations of his Chess recordings if you can, you won't be disappointed.

He signed with Stax in 1971 and utilised the label's R&B pedigree to the full with the addition of strings and Memphis Horns to his recordings. Although he hit the charts again, most notably with the excellent 'That's What Love Will Do' he did embark on one or two ill advised musical shifts (some would say abominations!) when he released a series of funk recordings which did him no justice. The Stax album "Blues 'n Soul" is however well worth the entrance fee. There are a number of ways to get hold of the Stax stuff, and the Primer would recommend the "Tin Pan Alley" compilation and "Walking The Back Streets" as well as Blues 'n Soul. "Stax Profiles" is a reasonable compilation.

Since 1984, he has been recording with Malaco, where sympathetic production has given us some excellent blues edged material, including "Back To Back" in 1988 and "Too Much Pain" in 1990.
The Malaco sets could be classed as too mellow and polished for their own good. I don't subscribe to that view but if you prefer your blues raw edged and traditional, they might not be for you. If you like the blues mixed in with a wealth of other influences, especially the soul vocalist tradition, they are unhesitatingly recommended. The 1999 release "Welcome To Little Milton" finds Milton in the company of a number of guests such as Lucinda Williams, Peter Wolf, Government Mule, Keb' Mo', Delbert McClinton and others. Everyone seems to be having a great time and the album is a thoroughly enjoyable if non essential purchase.

Sadly, the man who made 'The Blues Is Alright' a national anthem with blues enthusiasts around the globe passed away on August 4, 2005 after suffering a massive stroke on the 27th July.