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.
Spring
Little Milton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I feel it ll in my bones
A feeling that no one can explain, no
So all I can do is call it spring
Everything about me's fine
I feel so happy all the time
But now that spring will send me to you
We'll be together the first of spring
Smell the blossoms while I explain
All the reasons
That we've been apart, baby
And all the things I have in my heart
Oh well show the world
How strong our love
By all the stars in heaven above
What people say
Won′t mean a thing, oh no
In our hearts we ll know it′s spring
Oh baby, come on now, groove me
We'll be together
The first of spring, baby
Smell the blossoms while I explain
All the reason we′ve been apart, listen
And all the things I have in my heart
Oh and we'll show the world
How strong our love
By all the stars in heaven above
What people say
Won′t mean a thing, oh no
Cause in our hearts
We'll know it′s spring
I'm here to tell you, baby
I'm here to tell you its spring
Every time you hold me, uh huh
I can hear the robins sing, listen
And every time you kiss me, uh huh
In the midnight Hour baby
You make me know thai it′s spring, uh huh
Oh come on, baby, it′s spring
Come on now, groove me
All right, baby
Sound all fight
Baby, come on, baby, cookin'
Come on, yeah, oh baby, hit me, oh
Yeah, baby, spring, oh...
In Little Milton's song "Spring", the artist speaks of the feeling of joy and optimism that arises with the arrival of spring. He mentions feeling it in his bones and being unable to explain it. Little Milton sings about how everything around him seems to be fine and he feels so happy all the time. This is a clear manifestation of the feeling of renewal that spring brings with it.
The song also mentions the idea of being together with the one he loves during this time of year. It is implied that they had been apart for a while, and Spring brings the opportunity to reconcile and to show the world the strength of their love. Little Milton sings about smelling the blossoms and spending time outside in nature, a common pastime during this season. The lyrics suggest that during the time they spend together, the two will discuss all the reasons why they had been apart and all the things he has in his heart for her.
Additionally, he mentions that what people say won't mean a thing since they know it is Spring in their hearts. The song appears to be a romantic declaration of love during a time of year where everything seems to be thriving. The lyrics are simple yet emotions are powerful.
Line by Line Meaning
I feel that spring is comin′ on
I have a gut feeling that spring is on its way
I feel it all in my bones
I feel it very strongly
A feeling that no one can explain, no
It's a feeling that I can't put into words
So all I can do is call it spring
I'm labeling this feeling spring because it feels like the start of a new season
Everything about me's fine
I am doing well in all aspects of my life
I feel so happy all the time
I am constantly filled with joy
All year long I've been so blue
I have been sad for the entirety of the year
But now that spring will send me to you
Now that spring is here, I can be with you
We'll be together the first of spring
On the first day of spring, we'll be with each other
Smell the blossoms while I explain
We'll enjoy the fragrance of the blossoms while I tell you something
All the reasons that we've been apart, baby
I'll explain why we've been separated from each other
And all the things I have in my heart
I'll share all my emotions and feelings with you
Oh well show the world
We'll demonstrate to others
How strong our love
The intensity and sincerity of our love
By all the stars in heaven above
By the vastness of the cosmos
What people say
The opinions of others
Won't mean a thing, oh no
They won't affect us at all
In our hearts we'll know it's spring
We'll feel it in our hearts that it's the season of spring
Oh baby, come on now, groove me
Oh darling, let's dance together now
And every time you kiss me, uh huh
Each time you kiss me
In the midnight hour baby
Late at night
You make me know that it's spring, uh huh
You make me feel like it's springtime
Oh come on, baby, it's spring
Oh, let's enjoy this season of spring together
Come on now, groove me
Let's dance together
Writer(s): Sidney Banks
Contributed by Adam Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@northernsoulsongs
cool track, thanks :)
@stowngrewv
Nice ! Yes it is that time of the year. Thanx
@Cuntstantine
And I felt this song right away
@dominiquecrepin6910
Toujours très bon choix comme d'hab 👍👍👍🇫🇷
@primetimeoldies73ylastres26
🎼🎶🎼🎶🎶