Howlin' Wolf

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Chester Arthur Burnett
Born
June 10 1910 White Station, Mississippi, USA

Chester Arthur Burnett (June 10, 1910 – January 10, 1976), better known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and harmonica player.

1 Early life
2 Career
3 Covers
4 Music samples
5 References
6 External links

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Early life

Born in White Station near West Point, Mississippi, he was nicknamed "Big Foot" and "Bull Cow" in his early years, and he explained the origin of the name "Howlin' Wolf" thus: "I got that from my grandfather. He used to tell me stories about the wolves in that part of the country." As a youth he listened to Charley Patton, who taught him the rudiments of guitar, as well as to the Mississippi Sheiks, Tommy Johnson and Jimmie Rodgers, whose famous "blue yodel" Burnett integrated into his singing style. His harmonica playing was modelled on that of Rice Miller (Sonny Boy Williamson).

He farmed during the 1930s, served in the United States Army as a radioman in the Pacific Northwest during World War II, and by 1948 had formed a band which included guitarists Willie Johnson and M. T. Murphy, harmonica-player Junior Parker, a pianist named Destruction, and drummer Willie Steele. He began broadcasting on KWEM in West Memphis, Arkansas, alternating between performing and pitching farm equipment, and auditioned for Sam Phillips' Memphis Recording Service in 1951.

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Career

Howlin' Wolf quickly became a local celebrity, and soon began working with a band that included both Willie Johnson and guitarist Pat Hare. His first recordings came in 1951, when he was simultaneously signed to The Bihari Brothers' Modern Records and to Leonard Chess' Chess Records. Chess issued Howlin' Wolf's "How Many More Years" in August 1951; Wolf also recorded sides for Modern, with Ike Turner, in late 1951 and early 1952. Chess eventually won the war over the singer, and Wolf settled in Chicago, Illinois. He began playing with guitarist Hubert Sumlin, whose terse, curlicued solos perfectly complemented Burnett's huge voice and surprisingly subtle phrasing. In the mid-'50s Wolf released "Evil" and "Smokestack Lightnin'," both major R&B hits.

His 1962 album Howlin' Wolf is one of the most famous and influential blues records, known for its cover illustration of an acoustic guitar leaning against a rocking chair. This album contained "Wang Dang Doodle," "Goin' Down Slow," "Spoonful" and "The Red Rooster," songs which found their way into the repertoires of British and American bands infatuated with Chicago blues. In 1965 he appeared on the television show Shindig along with the Rolling Stones, who had covered "The Red Rooster" on an early album. He was often backed by bassist and songwriter Willie Dixon who authored such Howlin' Wolf standards as "Spoonful," "I Ain't Superstitious," "Little Red Rooster," "Back Door Man," "Evil," "Wang Dang Doodle" (primarily known as a Koko Taylor hit), and others.

Image:Howlinwolf.jpg

In 1971, Howlin' Wolf and his long-time guitarist Hubert Sumlin travelled to London to record the Howlin' Wolf London Sessions LP. British blues musicians Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Ian Stewart, Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts played alongside the Wolf on this album. He recorded his last album for Chess, The Back Door Wolf, in 1973.

At 6 foot, 3 inches and close to 300 pounds (136 kg), he was an imposing presence with one of the loudest and most memorable voices of all the "classic" 1950s blues singers. Howlin' Wolf's voice has been compared to "the sound of heavy machinery operating on a gravel road".

Howlin' Wolf, Rice Miller (Sonny Boy Williamson), Little Walter Jacobs and Muddy Waters are usually regarded as the greatest blues artists who recorded for Chess in Chicago. Sam Phillips once remarked of Chester Arthur Burnett, "When I heard Howlin' Wolf, I said, 'This is for me. This is where the soul of man never dies.' "

Chester Burnett "Howlin Wolf" is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Hillside, Cook County, Illinois, USA Plot: Section 18, right by the road. His gravestone has an image of a guitar and harmonica etched into it.

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Covers

Numerous artists have recorded cover versions of Howlin' Wolf songs:

"Little Red Rooster" was covered by Sam Cooke in 1963 and by The Rolling Stones in 1964.
The Yardbirds covered "Smokestack Lightning" in 1964, and The Animals covered "Smokestack Lightning" in 1966.
Soundgarden covered "Smokestack Lightning" on their first album Ultramega OK.
Led Zeppelin covered "How Many More Years" (they changed the name of the song to "How Many More Times") on their eponymous debut. They also covered "Killing Floor" in an altered version dubbed "The Lemon Song" on their second album, Led Zeppelin II.
The Doors covered "Back Door Man" for their first, self titled album, The Doors.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience covered "Killing Floor" at a BBC Saturday Club radio session in 1967, a recording of which is available on their 1998 BBC Sessions compilation.
Cream also covered two of his songs on their double-album Wheels of Fire. On the first (studio) disc, they covered "Sitting on Top of the World", and on the second (live) disc, they played a sixteen-minute version of "Spoonful".
Clutch covers "Who's Been Talking" on their 2005 release "Robot Hive/Exodus".
Stevie Ray Vaughan covered "Shake for me" on the live album "In the Beginning", even copying the original guitar solo, played by Hubert Sumlin.