Century of the Wolf
I had intended to include this at the tail end of the above post, but impulsivity being what it is, I'm opting to separate them at the last moment. Why's anybody's guess.
Without hyperbole or exaggeration, Howlin Wolf is one of perhaps only a handful of blues musicians who helped chart its course and shape its sound. Drawing on Charley Patton's thunderous growl and the Mississippi Sheiks' shake-your-ass beat, Chester Burnett would wax a substantial library of tunes that were firmly his own, whether covering Patton or getting his Dixon on. His music is primal and transcendent, very nearly a force of nature in themselves.
The Wolf's recordings have been scattered, reassembled, and re-issued nearly to the point of total confusion. So let's just stick to basics.
These discs qualify as utterly essential Howlin Wolf...
Memphis Days, The Definitive Edition, Vols. 1 & 2
Vol. 1
01. Oh, Red! (take 1) 2:46
02. My Last Affair (take 1) 3:04
03. Come Back Home (take 1) 2:36
04. California Boogie 2:59
05. California Blues 2:58
06. Look-A-Here Baby 2:11
07. Smile at Me 2:06
08. My Baby Walked Off 3:01
09. Drinkin' CV Wine 3:07
10. My Troubles and Me 3:18
11. Chocolate Drop 2:42
12. Mr. Highway Man 2:28
13. Bluebird Blues 2:50
14. Color and Kind 3:12
15. (Everybody's) In The Mood 2:59
16. Dorothy Mae (nr. 2) 2:38
17. I Got a Woman 3:28
18. Decoration Day Blues 3:17
19. (Well) That's All Right 3:02
20. How Many More Years 2:51
21. Baby Ride with Me (Ridin' in The Moonlight) 2:56
Vol. 2
1. Baby Ride With Me (Ridin' in The Moonlight)
2. How Many More Year
3. Moanin' at Midnight
4. Howlin' Wolf Boogie
5. The Wolf Is at Your Door
6. Mr. Highway Man
7. Getting Old and Grey
8. Worried All the Time
9. Saddle My Pony
10. Oh, Red!
11. My Last Affair
12. Come Back Home (take 2)
13. Dorothy Mae
14. Oh, Red! (take 2)
15. Come Back Home (take 3)
16. How Many More Years (2)
17. How Many More Years (3)
18. Baby Ride With Me (Ridin' in The Moonlight) (2)
19. Baby Ride With Me (Ridin' in The Moonlight) (3)
Both Volumes, One Link
Moanin' in the Moonlight (1959)
Chess
1. Moanin' At Midnight
2.How Many More Years
3. Smokestack Lightnin'
4. Baby, How Long
5. No Place To Go
6. All Night Boogie
7. Evil
8. I'm Leavin' You
9. Moanin' For My Baby
10.I Asked For Water (She Gave Me Gasoline)
11. Forty-Four
12. Somebody In My Home
Link
Self-Titled (aka Rocking Chair Album") (1962)
Chess
1.Shake For Me
2.Little Red Rooster
3.You'll Be Mine
4.Who's Been Talking
5.Wang Dang Doodle
6.Little Baby
7.Spoonful
8.Going Down Slow
9.Down in the Bottom
10.Back Door Man
11.Howlin For My Darlin'
12.Tell Me
Link
The Real Folk Blues (1966)
Chess
1. Just My Kind
2. I've Got a Woman
3. Work for Your Money
4. I'll Be Around
5. You Can't Be Beat
6. You Gonna Wreck My Life (No Place to Go)
7. I Love My Baby
8. Neighbors
9. I'm the Wolf
10. Rockin' Daddy
11. Who Will Be Next?
12. I Have a Little Girl
Link
More Real Folk Blues (1967)
Chess
Killing Floor
Louise
Poor Boy
Sittin' On Top of the World
Nature
My Country Sugar Mama
Tail-Dragger
300 Pounds of Joy
Natchez Burning
Built For Comfort
Oh Baby, Hold Me
Tell Me What I've Done
Smokestack Lightnin'
Hidden Charms
Link
Happy Birthday, Wolf, wherever you are!
Peace, Mudcatz
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Thanks, I read the interview with Wolf, I did not know his history. He really is a founding member of the great American Art of the Blues. Thanks also for the postings of his albums. I look forward to re-educating myself with a new appreciation of him.
ReplyDeleteYou're more than welcome, Lemonflag. Thanks so much for your kind words. I agree: Wolf was a founding member of the post-war scene. Those Memphis recordings are just mint, raw and raucous.
ReplyDeleteAlso check out the Baby Face Leroy disc I put up a couple weeks back. That's another great album showing off some early post-war Chicago.
Thanks again for weighing in.