Biography
Eurreal Wilford "Little Brother" Montgomery (April 18, 1906 – September 6, 1985) was born in Kentwood, Louisiana, a sawmill town near the Mississippi border just north of Lake Pontchartrain. He began playing piano at age four on an instrument his father purchased for the family, teaching himself simple "three finger blues" by ear. His father owned a honky-tonk that attracted prominent New Orleans pianists, and Jelly Roll Morton himself was a regular visitor — a foundational influence on the young Montgomery. By age eleven he had left home, spending four years playing barrelhouses and juke joints across Louisiana before widening his circuit through Mississippi, Alabama, and Texas.
Montgomery roamed the Deep South throughout the 1920s and 1930s, playing with the bands of Clarence Desdunes and Buddy Petit and building a formidable reputation on the barrelhouse circuit. His first recording session as a leader came in 1930 for Paramount, where he cut "Vicksburg Blues," which became one of the most widely imitated blues piano pieces of the era. He recorded extensively for Bluebird in 1935–36 and co-developed "The Forty-Fours" (evolved from "Vicksburg Blues"), a technically demanding composition that became a staple of blues piano repertoire. Hailed in Down Beat magazine in 1940 as "the greatest piano man that ever invaded Dixie," he permanently settled in Chicago in 1942, where his New Orleans-rooted swing, stride, boogie-woogie, ragtime, and blues synthesis made him a fixture in traditional jazz circles. He performed at Carnegie Hall with Kid Ory's Dixieland Band in 1949 and accompanied artists including Memphis Minnie, Otis Rush, Magic Sam, and Buddy Guy on recording sessions.
Though largely self-taught and unable to read music, Montgomery's stylistic range — described as moving from "the bopping earthiness of 'Frisco Hi-Ball' to the pearl-stringing elegance of 'Shreveport Farewell'" — made him one of the most versatile pianists in American vernacular music. He continued recording in the U.S., Europe, and Japan until his death in 1985. His influence on Chicago piano blues was enormous: he mentored Otis Spann and Little Johnnie Jones in Jackson, and inspired a young Willie Dixon in Vicksburg. He was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2013.
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Fun Facts
- Montgomery started playing piano at age four and left home at age eleven to play barrelhouses full-time — entirely self-taught and never able to read music throughout his entire career.
- 'Vicksburg Blues' originated as a collaborative invention: Montgomery and two friends improvising together called the new form 'the Forty Fours,' which he later transformed into his signature hit and one of the most imitated blues recordings of the 1930s.
- Down Beat magazine crowned him 'the greatest piano man that ever invaded Dixie' in 1940 — a testament to his reputation decades before his Chicago legacy was cemented.
- His nephew Paul Gayten became a successful R&B musician and producer, making the Montgomerys one of the most musically prolific families in Louisiana blues and R&B history.
Associated Acts
- Memphis Minnie and Her Combo
Musical Connections
Mentors/Influences
- Jelly Roll Morton - Regular visitor to Montgomery's father's honky-tonk in Kentwood, Louisiana; primary early stylistic influence [early 1910s]
Key Collaborators
- Clarence Desdunes - Montgomery played in Desdunes' band during his early touring years across the Deep South [1920s]
- Buddy Petit - Montgomery played with Petit's New Orleans jazz band [1920s]
- Baby Dodds - Collaborated on old-time jazz projects in Chicago following World War II [1940s]
- Lonnie Johnson - Collaborated on jazz projects in Chicago following World War II [1940s]
- Kid Ory - Played Carnegie Hall with Kid Ory's Dixieland Band
- Memphis Minnie - Accompanied on recording sessions as sideman pianist [1940s–1950s]
- Buddy Guy - Accompanied on recording sessions as sideman pianist [1960s–1970s]
- Magic Sam - Accompanied on recording sessions as sideman pianist [1960s]
- Otis Rush - Accompanied on recording sessions as sideman pianist [1960s]
Artists Influenced
- Willie Dixon - Inspired by Montgomery's piano style while Dixon was a young man in Vicksburg, Mississippi [1930s]
- Otis Spann - Mentored by Montgomery in Jackson, Mississippi; became one of Chicago's defining blues pianists [1930s–1940s]
- Sunnyland Slim - Directly influenced by Montgomery's barrelhouse and Chicago piano style [1930s–1940s]
- Skip James - Influenced by Montgomery's Mississippi Delta piano work [1930s]
- Arthur Big Boy Crudup - Influenced by Montgomery's style in the Mississippi blues scene [1930s]
Connection Network
External Links
Tags: #blues, #boogie-woogie, #jazz
References
Heard on WWOZ
LITTLE BROTHER MONTGOMERY has been played 2 times on WWOZ 90.7 FM, New Orleans' jazz and heritage station.