About Little Willie Littlefield
Willie Littlefield, Jr., billed as Little Willie Littlefield (September 16, 1931 – June 23, 2013), was an American R&B and boogie-woogie pianist and singer whose early recordings "formed a vital link between boogie-woogie and rock and roll". Littlefield was regarded as a teenage wonder and overnight sensation when in 1949, at the age of 18, he popularized the triplet piano style on his Modern Records debut single, "It's Midnight". He also recorded the first version of the song "Kansas City" (originally issued as "K. C. Lovin'"), in 1952. == Career == === Early career === Littlefield was born in El Campo, Texas, and grew up in Houston with his mother. By 1947, at the age of sixteen, he was already a local attraction in many of the clubs on Dowling Street in Houston and was recording for Eddie Henry, a local record shop proprietor who ran his own label, Eddie's Records. He formed his first band with the saxophonist Don Wilkerson, a friend from school. Other major influences on Littlefield's style were the Texas musicians Charles Brown and Amos Milburn. His first recording, "Little Willie's Boogie", was a hit in Texas in 1949 and brought him to the attention of Jules Bihari, of Modern Records in Los Angeles, who was searching for a performer to rival the success of Amos Milburn. === Success at Modern records === Littlefield returned to Modern Records and recorded "It's Midnight". It reached number three on the Billboard R&B chart, and its follow-up, "Farewell", reached number five.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.