Little Brother Montgomery
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Eurreal Wilford "Little Brother" Montgomery, (c. 1906 - 1985), was a jazz pianist and singer.
Montgomery was born on April 18, 1906, in the town of Kentwood, Louisiana, across Lake Pontchartrain from the city of New Orleans where he spent much of his childhood. Jelly Roll Morton was an important early influence on him.
Early on he played at African American lumber and turpentine camps in Louisiana and Mississippi, then with the bands of Clarence Desdunes and Buddy Petit. He first went to Chicago from 1928 to 1931, where he made his first recordings. From 1931 through 1938 he led a band in Jackson, Mississippi.
In 1941 Montgomery moved back to Chicago, which would be his base for the rest of his life, with various tours to other United States cities and Europe. In the late 1950s he was "discovered" by wider white audiences. His fame grew in the 1960s, and he continued to make many recordings, including on his own record label.
Largely self-taught, Montgomery is often thought of as a blues pianist, and he was in fact an important blues pianist with an original style. He was also quite versatile, however, and worked in jazz bands including larger ensembles that used written arrangements. Although he did not read music, he learned band routines by ear -- once through an arrangement and he had it memorized. Among his original compositions are Shreveport Farewell, Farrish Street Jive, and Vicksburg Blues.
Montgomery died on September 6 1985 in Chicago, Illinois and is interred there in the Oak Woods Cemetery.
