Milt Larkin
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Milt Larkin (b. Oct. 10, 1910, Houston, Texas - d. there, August 31, 1996) was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader.
Larkin was an autodidact on the trumpet, and got his start playing in Texas in the 1930s with Chester Boone and Giles Mitchell. Between 1936 and 1942 he led his own band, touring the southwest United States and had gigs in Chicago, Kansas City, and at the Apollo Theater in New York City. Personnel in the band included Illinois Jacquet, Arnett Cobb, Eddie Vinson, and Wild Bill Davis. This ensemble won high praise but never recorded.
Larkin disbanded the group when he entered the Army. From 1943 to 1946 he played in Sy Oliver's army band, also playing on trombone. Larkin first recorded after leaving the service, recording with a number of ensembles over the next decade. In 1956 he moved to New York and led a septet at the Celebrity Club. In the 1970s he returned to Houston and retired.
