Howlin' Wolf (album)

Last updated
Howlin' Wolf
HowlinWolfRockinChair.jpg
Compilation album by
ReleasedJanuary 11, 1962
Recorded1959-1962
Genre Chicago blues
Length31:57
Label Chess
Producer Ralph Bass
Howlin' Wolf chronology
Moanin' in the Moonlight
(1959)
Howlin' Wolf
(1962)
Howling Wolf Sings the Blues
(1962)
Singles from Howlin' Wolf
  1. "Tell Me"
    Released: February 10, 1960
  2. "Spoonful"
    Released: July 18, 1960
  3. "Wang Dang Doodle / Back Door Man"
    Released: January 24, 1961
  4. "Down in the Bottom"
    Released: June 8, 1961
  5. "Little Red Rooster"
    Released: October 1961
  6. "You'll Be Mine"
    Released: February 1962
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [2]
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [4]

Howlin' Wolf is the second album from the Chicago blues singer/guitarist/harmonicist, Howlin' Wolf. [5] It is a collection of twelve singles previously released by the Chess label from 1960 through 1962. [6] [7] Because of the illustration on its sleeve (by Don S. Bronstein), the album is often called The Rockin' Chair Album, a nickname even added to the cover on some reissue pressings of the LP.

Contents

Legacy and awards

In 1966, fellow Chess artist Koko Taylor recorded a cover version of "Wang Dang Doodle" which reached No. 4 on the Billboard's R&B Charts and became a minor crossover hit by making No. 58 on the Billboard Hot 100. [8] Earlier in 1963, Sam Cooke released a single of "Little Red Rooster" making No. 7 on the R&B Singles chart and No. 11 on the Hot 100. [9]

In 1964, "Little Red Rooster" was released by the Rolling Stones and became the first and only time that a blues record reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart (see Little Red Rooster#Rolling Stones version). In 1966, Cream recorded "Spoonful" on their debut album Fresh Cream and included a live, 17-minute version on their 1968 album Wheels of Fire . In 1969 the songs "Shake for Me" and "Back Door Man" were used in the lyrics to the Led Zeppelin song "Whole Lotta Love."

In 1985, the album won a Blues Music Award by The Blues Foundation for 'Classics of Blues Recordings—Album'. [10] In 2012, the album was ranked No. 238 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time and described as "an outrageous set of sex songs written by Willie Dixon." [11] It was named the third greatest guitar album of all time by Mojo magazine in 2004. [12]

Reissue

In 1984, this album was reissued by Chess as CH-9183. The cover picture was changed slightly adding an elliptical logo beneath the album title that reads "CHICAGO 26 Golden years Single Album" and the "Chess LP 1469" trademark was replaced with the "CH-9183" identifier.

Track listing

All tracks composed by Willie Dixon; except where indicated

Side one
  1. "Shake for Me" – 2:12
  2. "The Red Rooster" – 2:22
  3. "You'll Be Mine" – 2:25
  4. "Who's Been Talkin'" (Howlin' Wolf) – 2:18
  5. "Wang Dang Doodle" – 2:18
  6. "Little Baby" – 2:45
Side two
  1. "Spoonful" – 2:42
  2. "Going Down Slow" (St. Louis Jimmy Oden) – 3:18
  3. "Down in the Bottom" – 2:05
  4. "Back Door Man" – 2:45
  5. "Howlin' for My Darlin'" – 2:28
  6. "Tell Me" (Howlin' Wolf) – 2:52 [1]

Personnel

Performers
Production

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Willie Dixon</span> American blues musician (1915–1992)

William James Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he is perhaps best known as one of the most prolific songwriters of his time. Next to Muddy Waters, Dixon is recognized as the most influential person in shaping the post–World War II sound of the Chicago blues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Howlin' Wolf</span> American blues musician (1910–1976)

Chester Arthur Burnett, better known by his stage name Howlin' Wolf, was an American blues singer and guitarist. He was at the forefront of transforming acoustic Delta blues into electric Chicago blues, and over a four-decade career, recorded blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and psychedelic rock. He is regarded as one of the most influential blues musicians of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koko Taylor</span> American blues singer (1928–2009)

Koko Taylor was an American singer whose style encompassed Chicago blues, electric blues, rhythm and blues and soul blues. Sometimes called "The Queen of the Blues", she was known for her rough, powerful vocals. Over the course of her career, she was nominated for 11 Grammy Awards, winning 1985's Best Traditional Blues Album for her appearance on Blues Explosion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Back Door Man</span> Song written by Willie Dixon and recorded by Howlin Wolf

"Back Door Man" is a blues song written by American musician Willie Dixon and recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1960. The lyrics draw on a Southern U.S. cultural term for an extramarital affair. The song is one of several Dixon-Wolf songs that became popular among rock musicians, including the Doors who recorded it for their 1967 self-titled debut album.

<i>Moanin in the Moonlight</i> 1959 compilation album by Howlin Wolf

Moanin' in the Moonlight is a compilation album and the first album by American blues artist Howlin' Wolf, released by Chess Records in 1959. It contains songs previously issued as singles, including one of his best-known, "Smokestack Lightning". Rolling Stone ranked it number 477 on its 2020 list of "the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time".

<i>Fleetwood Mac in Chicago</i> 1969 studio album by Fleetwood Mac

Blues Jam in Chicago is a studio recording by the British rock band Fleetwood Mac, originally released in two single-LP volumes by Blue Horizon in December 1969. It was the result of a recording session in early 1969 at Chess Records in Chicago with Fleetwood Mac, then a young British blues band, and a number of famous Chicago blues artists from whom they drew inspiration. The album has also been released, with slightly different track listings, under the titles Blues Jam at Chess Volumes One and Two and Fleetwood Mac in Chicago, the latter by Sire Records in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goin' Down Slow</span> Blues standard written by St. Louis Jimmy Oden

"Goin' Down Slow" or "Going Down Slow" is a blues song composed by American blues singer St. Louis Jimmy Oden. It is considered a blues standard and "one of the most famous blues of all".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spoonful</span> Blues standard first recorded by Howlin Wolf

"Spoonful" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon and first recorded in 1960 by Howlin' Wolf. Called "a stark and haunting work", it is one of Dixon's best known and most interpreted songs. Etta James and Harvey Fuqua had a pop and R&B record chart hit with their duet cover of "Spoonful" in 1961, and it was popularized in the late 1960s by the British rock group Cream.

<i>The London Howlin Wolf Sessions</i> 1971 studio album by Howlin Wolf

The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions is an album by blues musician Howlin' Wolf released in 1971 on Chess Records, and on Rolling Stones Records in Britain. It was one of the first super session blues albums, setting a blues master among famous musicians from the second generation of rock and roll, in this case Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Charlie Watts, and Bill Wyman. It peaked at #79 on the Billboard 200.

"Wang Dang Doodle" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon. Music critic Mike Rowe calls it a party song in an urban style with its massive, rolling, exciting beat. It was first recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1960 and released by Chess Records in 1961. In 1965, Dixon and Leonard Chess persuaded Koko Taylor to record it for Checker Records, a Chess subsidiary. Taylor's rendition quickly became a hit, reaching number thirteen on the Billboard R&B chart and number 58 on the pop chart. "Wang Dang Doodle" became a blues standard and has been recorded by various artists. Taylor's version was added to the United States National Recording Registry in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Red Rooster</span> Blues standard credited to Willie Dixon

"Little Red Rooster" is a blues standard credited to arranger and songwriter Willie Dixon. The song was first recorded in 1961 by American blues musician Howlin' Wolf in the Chicago blues style. His vocal and slide guitar playing are key elements of the song. It is rooted in the Delta blues tradition and the theme is derived from folklore. Musical antecedents to "Little Red Rooster" appear in earlier songs by blues artists Charlie Patton and Memphis Minnie.

<i>I Am the Blues</i> 1970 studio album by Willie Dixon

I Am the Blues is the sixth studio Chicago blues album released in 1970 by the well-known bluesman Willie Dixon. It is also the title of Dixon's autobiography, edited by Don Snowden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Ain't Superstitious</span> Blues song written by Willie Dixon

"I Ain't Superstitious" is a song written by bluesman Willie Dixon and first recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1961. It recounts various superstitions, including that of a black cat crossing the pathway. The song has been recorded by a number of artists, including Jeff Beck, whose blues rock adaptation in 1968 was named one of Rolling Stone magazine's "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time".

<i>The Chess Box</i> 1988 box set by Chuck Berry

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<i>His Best</i> (Howlin Wolf album) 1997 greatest hits album by Howlin Wolf

His Best is a greatest hits album by American blues musician Howlin' Wolf. The album was originally released on April 8, 1997, by MCA/Chess Records, and was one of a series of releases by MCA for the 50th anniversary of Chess Records that year. Ten years later – on April 17, 2007 – the album was reissued by Geffen Records as The Definitive Collection.

<i>The London Muddy Waters Sessions</i> 1972 studio album by Muddy Waters

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<i>Muddy, Brass & the Blues</i> 1966 studio album by Muddy Waters

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<i>The Real Folk Blues</i> (Howlin Wolf album) 1965 compilation album by Howlin Wolf

The Real Folk Blues is a compilation album by blues musician Howlin' Wolf, which was released by Chess Records in 1965. The album's songs, which were originally issued as singles, were recorded in Chicago between 1956 and 1965.

<i>Koko Taylor</i> (album) 1969 studio album by Koko Taylor

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References

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  4. "223) Howlin' Wolf : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2010-04-12. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
  5. Both Sides Now: Chess Album Discography, Part 1: LP-1425 to LPS-1553, Bsnpubs.com, accessed September 19, 2019
  6. Wirz' American Music: Howlin' Wolf Discography, Wirz.de, accessed September 19, 2019
  7. Howlin' Wolf Sessionography, Depanorama.net, accessed September 19, 2019
  8. Huey, Steve. "Koko Taylor - Music Biography, Credits and Discography". AllMusic . Retrieved 2012-08-07.
  9. Whitburn, Joel (1988). Top R&B Singles 1942-1988, Records Research, Inc., ISBN   978-0-89820-069-0.
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  12. Barnes, Anthony (21 July 2003). "Hendrix heads list of 100 guitar greats with 'Are You Experienced'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 8 April 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2010.