Milton was born James Milton Campbell, Jr., in the Mississippi Delta town of Inverness and raised in Greenville by a farmer and local blues musician.[2] By age twelve he had learned the guitar and was a street musician, chiefly influenced by T-Bone Walker and his blues and rock and roll contemporaries.[2] In 1952, while still a teenager playing in local bars, he caught the attention of Ike Turner, who was at that time a talent scout for Sam Phillips' Sun Records. He signed a contract with the label and recorded a number of singles. None of them broke through onto radio or sold well at record stores, however, and Milton left the Sun label by 1955.[2]
After trying several labels without notable success, including Trumpet Records,[3] Milton set up the St. Louis based Bobbin Records label, which ultimately scored a distribution deal with Leonard Chess' Chess Records.[2] As a record producer, Milton helped bring artists such as Albert King and Fontella Bass to fame, while experiencing his own success for the first time.[2] After a number of small format and regional hits, his 1962 single, "So Mean to Me," broke onto the Billboard R&B chart, eventually peaking at #14.
Following a short break to tour, managing other acts, and spending time recording new material, he returned to music in 1965 with a more polished sound, similar to that of B.B. King. After the ill-received "Blind Man" (R&B: #86), he released back-to-back hit singles. The first, "We're Gonna Make It," a blues-infused soul song, topped the R&B chart and broke through onto Top 40 radio, a format then dominated largely by white artists. He followed the song with #4 R&B hit "Who's Cheating Who?" All three songs were featured on his album, We're Gonna Make It, released that summer.
Throughout the late 1960s Milton released a number of moderately successful singles, but did not issue a further album until 1969, with Grits Ain't Groceries featuring his hit of the same name, as well as "Just a Little Bit" and "Baby, I Love You". With the death of Leonard Chess the same year, Milton's distributor, Checker Records fell into disarray, and Milton joined the Stax label two years later.[2] Adding complex orchestration to his works, Milton scored hits with "That's What Love Will Make You Do" and "What It Is" from his live album, What It Is: Live at Montreux. He appeared in the documentary film, Wattstax, which was released in 1973.[4] Stax, however, had been losing money since late in the previous decade and was forced into bankruptcy in 1975.[2]
After leaving Stax, Milton struggled to maintain a career, moving first to Evidence, then the MCA imprint Mobile Fidelity Records, before finding a home at the independent record label, Malaco Records, where he remained for much of the remainder of his career.[2] His last hit single, "Age Ain't Nothin' But a Number," was released in 1983 from the album of the same name.[2] In 1988, Little Milton was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and won a W.C. Handy Award.[2] His most final album, Think of Me, was released in May 2005 on the Telarc imprint, and included writing and guitar on three songs by Peter Shoulder of the UK-based blues-rock trio Winterville.
The name 'Little Milton' was reused for Gerald Bostock, the fictional boy poet central to Jethro Tull's 1972 record Thick as a Brick.
Milton died on August 4, 2005 from complications following a stroke.
Blue Monday
Little Milton Lyrics
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Got me workin' like a dog all day
Here comes Tuesday, oh hard Tuesday
I'm so tired, I've got no time to play
Look out Wednesday I'm beat to my bone
My girl calls, I gotta tell her I'm not home
She knows Thursday is a hard workin day
Til Friday I get paid
All my tired has gone away
Got my money and my honey
And we're out on the town to play
Sunday morning my head is bad
But it's worth it, all the times I had
But I've still got to get my rest
For Monday is a mess Saturday morning,
Oh Satirday morning
All my tired has gone away
Me and my honey, we got some money
And were out on the town play
Sunday morning my head is bad
But it's worth all the times I had
But I've got to go and get some rest
For Monday is a mess!
Little Milton's "Blue Monday" is a song that describes the songwriter's experiences of the everyday work week and how he looks forward to the weekend. The song is an anthem for the blue-collar working class, as it reflects the struggles of the everyday worker who is plagued with the constant pressure of his job. Through a rhythm-filled song with an upbeat melody, the message behind the lyrics is conveyed.
The song begins with the singer expressing his intense dislike of Monday, which he describes as his worst day of the week, where he has to work like a dog all day. He then transitions to Friday, which he refers to as the day he gets paid, an indication that the week has been spent working long hours with little or no rest. Saturday is a day to relax, to hang out with friends, and enjoy the fruit of his labor. Sunday morning, on the other hand, he wakes up with a bad headache, a reminder of all the fun he had on Saturday night.
The song title "Blue Monday" refers to the feeling of depression or sadness associated with the start of a new workweek. The song's lyrics highlight the daily struggles of the working-class, but it also captures the joyous feeling that comes with the weekend when workers can unwind and recharge. The upbeat melody is an interesting juxtaposition to the lyrics, which helps to drive home the message of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Blue Monday, how I hate blue Monday
I despise the start of the workweek known as 'Blue Monday'.
Got me workin' like a dog all day
I'm working extremely hard and long hours every day.
Here comes Tuesday, oh hard Tuesday
The second day of the workweek is just as difficult to get through.
I'm so tired, I've got no time to play
I'm exhausted and don't have any free time to enjoy leisure activities.
Look out Wednesday I'm beat to my bone
By Wednesday I am physically and mentally exhausted.
My girl calls, I gotta tell her I'm not home
My girlfriend is calling me, but I'm too tired to talk to her.
She knows Thursday is a hard workin day
My girlfriend is aware that Thursday is also a challenging workday.
Til Friday I get paid
The only good thing about the week is getting paid on Friday.
Oh Saturday morning, Saturday morning
Finally, it's the weekend, and I'm waking up on Saturday morning.
All my tired has gone away
All of my exhaustion has dissipated, and I feel revitalized.
Got my money and my honey
I have both my paycheck and my girlfriend with me.
And we're out on the town to play
We're going out to enjoy some entertainment and activities.
Sunday morning my head is bad
Waking up on Sunday morning, I have a headache from last night's activities.
But it's worth it, all the times I had
Despite feeling unwell, the memories from Saturday night make it all worth it.
But I've still got to get my rest
Despite my desire to keep the weekend going, I need to take a break.
For Monday is a mess Saturday morning,
Even though I feel great on Saturday morning, I know Monday is going to be awful.
Oh Satirday morning
Once again, it's Saturday morning.
All my tired has gone away
I'm feeling refreshed and rejuvenated once more.
Me and my honey, we got some money
My girlfriend and I have some cash to spend together.
And were out on the town play
We're making the most of our time together, enjoying various activities.
But I've got to go and get some rest
Although I want to keep the weekend going, I know I must sleep.
For Monday is a mess!
Just like every other week, Monday is going to be terrible.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DON ROBEY, GILBERT G. CAPLE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind