Howlin' Wolf was one of modern blues' most
electrifying performers. Physically a large man, standing over six
feet tall and weighing nearly 300 pounds, he would crawl out onto the stage
on all fours, or jump around like an angry man, like a wolf-man.
The energy with which he sang added a brand new dimension to the traditional
Delta Blues upon which his style was based (Escott, 1991).
Born Chester Arthur Burnett in West Point, Mississippi, Howlin' Wolf
grew up on a cotton plantation and spent most of his life as a farmer,
entertaining only on the side. Among his many musical influences
was the blues yodeling "Father of Country Music," Jimmie
Rodgers. Wolf said, "I couldn't do no yodelin', so I turned to
growlin', then howlin', and it's done fine for me."
After serving in World War II, Wolf moved to West Memphis, Arkansas,
bought an electric guitar, and formed his first band (Shaw, 1986).
He made his first recordings at Sun Studios with Sam
Phillips in the spring of 1951. In February of the next year,
he signed with Chess Records and eventually moved to the Chicago blues
scene. In the early 60s, he played overseas with the American Blues
Festival package and performed regularly in some of Chicago's most noted
clubs (Santelli, 1993).
Wolf began to slow down by the early 70s due to ill health and an automobile
accident which damaged his kidney. His last performance was in Chicago
with B. B. King in
November of 1975; he died two months later of kidney failure.
Howlin' Wolf was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame in
1980 and the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. He is, perhaps,
"the most underrated of the R & B generation of bluesmen" (Shaw, 1978).
Escott, Colin and Hawkins, Martin. Good
Rockin' Tonight: Sun records and the Birth of Rock 'n' Roll.
New
York, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1991.
Santelli, Robert. The
Big Book of Blues. New York, New York: Penguin Publishing,
1993.
Shaw, Arnold. Black
Popular Music in America. New York, New York: Schirmer
Books, 1986.
Shaw, Arnold. Honkers
and Shouters: The Golden Years of Rhythm & Blues.
New York, New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, inc., 1978.
