401 Milton Brown (1903-1936) and his Musical Brownies “Taking Off” 1935

Brown, one of the founders of Western Swing, and his Brownies “embraced a wildly improvisational style and, with the addition of jazz guitarist Bob Dunn in 1935, became the first country-rooted act to utilize an electric guitar.” They “were the most popular band in Texas” until Brown ran into a telegraph pole, killing his 16 year old passenger in 1936. He died in a hospital a few days later, and the band broke up in 1938 (Rick Koster, Texas Music, 1998).

Milton Brown and his Musical Brownies “Taking Off”