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Howlin' Wolf

Howlin' Wolf was a seminal figure in the development of the Chicago blues style. His fierce, growling voice, punctuated by his trademark falsetto 'howl,' carried with it the primitive energy of the country blues he learned as a young man on the Delta. He successfully made the transition between the country style and the urban style, and in doing so, he was one of a handful of artists who shaped and defined the emerging urban blues sound. Literally hundreds of artists (his contemporaries included) have claimed him as an influence, and equal numbers have recorded their own versions of his songs. Howlin' Wolf was born Chester Arthur Burnett on June 10, 1910 somewhere between West Point and Aberdeen, Mississippi. At age 13, his family moved to a plantation on the Mississippi River Delta near Ruleville, Mississippi. Prior to this move, Burnett's musical experience had been confined to singing in the Baptist church on Sundays. At age 18, his father gave him a guitar and around the same time he met Charley Patton, an influential blues performer. Taking a liking to the young man, Patton showed Burnett the basics of the Delta Blues style. For the next five years, Burnett farmed full time with his family while occasionally singing and playing at weekend fish fries and Saturday night parties. In 1933, the Burnett family moved onto a plantation near Parkin, Arkansas, where Burnett learned to play harmonica from Sonny Boy Williamson, another influential Delta blues musician. He teamed up with Williamson, abandoned farming, and began moving around the Delta. Playing in bars and on the streets, Burnett became "well known amongst the itinerant musicians of Mississippi...." During his wanderings, Burnett crossed paths with "almost every major Mississippi artist" but he seemed most impressed with Patton's brand of showmanship. Burnett incorporated some of Patton's act into his own, performing tricks such as dropping to his knees, or lying on his back while whooping and hollering. Burnett continued to roam the Delta, singing and playing until 1941 when he was drafted. After his discharge in 1945, Burnett returned to Parkin for a brief period of time. He then farmed on his own in Penton, Mississippi for two years. In 1948, Burnett moved to West Memphis, Arkansas, formed a band of his own, and gave up farming in favor of a career in music. Touring Arkansas and Mississippi, Burnett and his band "built a solid reputation for themselves in the Delta jukes." Burnett's career-making break came at age 38, when he was given the chance to perform a weekly show on a West Memphis radio station, KWEM.

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342
Album Review

Howlin' Wolf: Rockin' The Blues: Live in Germany 1964

Read "Rockin' The Blues: Live in Germany 1964" reviewed by Mike Perciaccante


Through the years, Howlin' Wolf's 1964 performances in Germany have reached legendary status. Many different recordings of these concerts have surfaced in many different configurations. Rockin' The Blues: Live in Germany 1964 remained previously unreleased in the United States, until now.

This Acrobat Music set was recorded in Bremen at The American Folk Blues Festival during The Wolf's first overseas tour, and collects nine songs featuring an all-star band of Chicago's finest Blues musicians--guitarist Hubert Sumlin, bassist Willie ...

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Music Industry

Virginia Woolf To Howlin' Wolf: Author Peter Guralnick On Algorithm-Defeating Art, Expression Of Emotion [INTERVIEW]

Virginia Woolf To Howlin' Wolf: Author Peter Guralnick On Algorithm-Defeating Art, Expression Of Emotion [INTERVIEW]

Source: HypeBot

Here George Howard shares his recent experience speaking with Peter Guralnick, an author noted for his use of music as a tool through which to explore socio-political and cultural issues. The two discussed their shared concern of an increasingly algorithm-based culture of music consumption, and if we have reached peak curation. Guest post by George Howard on Forbes Peter Guralnick exists in a rarified realm of those who write immensely entertaining books about music that are also appropriately classified as scholarly and definitive. ...

Music Industry

Documentary: Howlin' Wolf

Documentary: Howlin' Wolf

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers


146

Recording

Howlin' Wolf - Smokestack Lightning / Complete Chess Masters (1951 to 1960) (Hip-O Select, 2011)

Howlin' Wolf - Smokestack Lightning / Complete Chess Masters (1951 to 1960) (Hip-O Select, 2011)

Source: Music and More by Tim Niland

Chester Burnett, aka Howlin' Wolf was one of the most primordial and influential figures on the blues scene from the 1950's to the 1970's. His protean voice and harmonica, and rudimentary guitar were a force of nature. Born in Mississippi, Wolf was in a sense a transitional figure who straddled the gap between the great pre-war musicians like Charley Patton and Son House and the later blues-influenced rock 'n' roll musicians like The Yardbirds and The Rolling Stones. He emigrated ...

158

Recording

Howlin' Wolf - Live and Cookin' at Alice's Revisited (1972, Reissue)

Howlin' Wolf - Live and Cookin' at Alice's Revisited (1972, Reissue)

Source: Something Else!

By Nick DeRiso Howlin' Wolf, posthumously inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame in 1980 and then the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991, had no right to rock it like this. Not after what he had been through. By the time of his 1972 date at Chicago's Alice's Revisited, he had suffered numerous heart attacks. Two years before, he nearly been killed in an automobile accident, and Wolf's wife Lillie administered dialysis treatments every three days. ...

274

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Howlin' Wolf

Jazz Musician of the Day: Howlin' Wolf

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Howlin' Wolf's birthday today!

JAZZ MUSICIAN OF THE DAY Howlin' Wolf

Howlin’ Wolf - vocals, guitar, composer, Blues Legend! (1910 - 1976) Howlin\' Wolf was a seminal figure in the development of the Chicago blues style. His fierce, growling voice, punctuated by his trademark falsetto \'howl... more

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238

Recording

Howlin' Wolf 1964 Live in Germany Set to be Issued by Acrobat Music

Howlin' Wolf 1964 Live in Germany Set to be Issued by Acrobat Music

Source: conqueroo

November 1964 American Folk Blues tour concert featured musicians Sunnyland Slim, Hubert Sumlin, Willie Dixon and Clifton James

NEW YORK, N.Y. — In the pantheon of blues, Howlin’ Wolf was in a category of his own. At 6’3” and 275 pounds, he had a voice that resonated with menace — not every bluesman could make a song like “I Asked Her for Water (She Brought Me Gasoline)” convincing. The Blues Foundation Hall of Fame and Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of ...

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