In the history of the blues, there has never been anyone quite like the Howlin' Wolf. Six foot three and close to 300 pounds in his salad days, the Wolf was the primal force of the music spun out to its ultimate conclusion. A Robert Johnson may have possessed more lyrical insight, a Muddy Waters more dignity, and a B.B. King certainly more technical expertise, but no one could match him for the singular ability to rock the house down to the foundation while simultaneously scaring its patrons out of its wits. 

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He was born in West Point, MS, and named after the 21st President of the United States (Chester Arthur). His father was a farmer and Wolf took to it as well until his 18th birthday, when a chance meeting with Delta blues legend Charley Patton changed his life forever. Though he never came close to learning the subtleties of Patton's complex guitar technique, two of the major components of Wolf's style (Patton's inimitable growl of a voice and his propensity for entertaining) were learned first hand from the Delta blues master. The main source of Wolf's hard-driving, rhythmic style on harmonica came when Aleck "Rice" Miller (Sonny Boy Williamson) married his half-sister Mary and taught him the rudiments of the instrument. He first started playing in the early '30s as a strict Patton imitator, while others recall him at decade's end rocking the juke joints with a neck-rack harmonica and one of the first electric guitars anyone had ever seen. After a four-year stretch in the Army, he settled down as a farmer and weekend player in West Memphis, AR, and it was here that Wolf's career in music began in earnest. 

By 1948, he had established himself within the community as a radio personality. As a means of advertising his own local appearances, Wolf had a 15-minute radio show on KWEM in West Memphis, interspersing his down-home blues with farm reports and like-minded advertising that he sold himself. But a change in Wolf's sound that would alter everything that came after was soon in coming because when listeners tuned in for Wolf's show, the sound was up-to-the-minute electric. Wolf had put his first band together, featuring the explosive guitar work of Willie Johnson, whose aggressive style not only perfectly suited Wolf's sound but aurally extended and amplified the violence and nastiness of it as well. In any discussion of Wolf's early success both live, over the airwaves, and on record, the importance of Willie Johnson cannot be overestimated. 

Wolf finally started recording in 1951, when he caught the ear of Sam Phillips, who first heard him on his morning radio show. The music Wolf made in the Memphis Recording Service studio was full of passion and zest and Phillips simultaneously leased the results to the Bihari Brothers in Los Angeles and Leonard Chess in Chicago. Suddenly, Howlin' Wolf had two hits at the same time on the R&B charts with two record companies claiming to have him exclusively under contract. Chess finally won him over and as Wolf would proudly relate years later, "I had a 4,000 dollar car and 3,900 dollars in my pocket. I'm the onliest one drove out of the South like a gentleman." It was the winter of 1953 and Chicago would be his new home. 

When Wolf entered the Chess studios the next year, the violent aggression of the Memphis sides was being replaced with a Chicago backbeat and, with very little fanfare, a new member in the band. Hubert Sumlin proved himself to be the Wolf's longest-running musical associate. He first appears as a rhythm guitarist on a 1954 session, and within a few years' time his style had fully matured to take over the role of lead guitarist in the band by early 1958. In what can only be described as an "angular attack," Sumlin played almost no chords behind Wolf, sometimes soloing right through his vocals, featuring wild skitterings up and down the fingerboard and biting single notes. If Willie Johnson was Wolf's second voice in his early recording career, then Hubert Sumlin would pick up the gauntlet and run with it right to the end of the howler's life. 

By 1956, Wolf was in the R&B charts again, racking up hits with "Evil" and "Smokestack Lightnin'." He remained a top attraction both on the Chicago circuit and on the road. His records, while seldom showing up on the national charts, were still selling in decent numbers down South. But by 1960, Wolf was teamed up with Chess staff writer Willie Dixon, and for the next five years he would record almost nothing but songs written by Dixon. The magic combination of Wolf's voice, Sumlin's guitar, and Dixon's tunes sold a lot of records and brought the 50-year-old bluesman roaring into the next decade with a considerable flourish. The mid-'60s saw him touring Europe regularly with "Smokestack Lightnin'" becoming a hit in England some eight years after its American release. Certainly any list of Wolf's greatest sides would have to include "I Ain't Superstitious," "The Red Rooster," "Shake for Me," "Back Door Man," "Spoonful," and "Wang Dang Doodle," Dixon compositions all. While almost all of them would eventually become Chicago blues standards, their greatest cache occurred when rock bands the world over started mining the Chess catalog for all it was worth. One of these bands was the Rolling Stones, whose cover of "The Red Rooster" became a number-one record in England. At the height of the British Invasion, the Stones came to America in 1965 for an appearance on ABC-TV's rock music show, Shindig. Their main stipulation for appearing on the program was that Howlin' Wolf would be their special guest. With the Stones sitting worshipfully at his feet, the Wolf performed a storming version of "How Many More Years," being seen on his network-TV debut by an audience of a few million. Wolf never forgot the respect the Stones paid him, and he spoke of them highly right up to his final days. 

Dixon and Wolf parted company by 1964 and Wolf was back in the studio doing his own songs. One of the classics to emerge from this period was "Killing Floor," featuring a modern backbeat and a incredibly catchy guitar riff from Sumlin. Catchy enough for Led Zeppelin to appropriate it for one of their early albums, cheerfully crediting it to themselves in much the same manner as they had done with numerous other blues standards. By the end of the decade, Wolf's material was being recorded by artists including the Doors, the Electric Flag, the Blues Project, Cream, and Jeff Beck. The result of all these covers brought Wolf the belated acclaim of a young, white audience. Chess' response to this was to bring him into the studio for a "psychedelic" album, truly the most dreadful of his career. His last big payday came when Chess sent him over to England in 1970 to capitalize on the then-current trend of London Session albums, recording with Eric Clapton on lead guitar and other British superstars. Wolf's health was not the best, but the session was miles above the earlier, ill-advised attempt to update Wolf's sound for a younger audience. 

As the '70s moved on, the end of the trail started coming closer. By now Wolf was a very sick man; he had survived numerous heart attacks and was suffering kidney damage from an automobile accident that sent him flying through the car's windshield. His bandleader Eddie Shaw firmly rationed Wolf to a meager half-dozen songs per set. Occasionally some of the old fire would come blazing forth from some untapped wellspring, and his final live and studio recordings show that he could still tear the house apart when the spirit moved him. He entered the Veterans Administration Hospital in 1976 to be operated on, but never survived it, finally passing away on January 10th of that year. 

But his passing did not go unrecognized. A life-size statue of him was erected shortly after in a Chicago park. Eddie Shaw kept his memory and music alive by keeping his band, the Wolf Gang, together for several years afterward. A child-education center in Chicago was named in his honor and in 1980 he was elected to the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame. In 1991, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. A couple of years later, his face was on a United States postage stamp. Live performance footage of him exists in the CD-ROM computer format. Howlin' Wolf is now a permanent part of American history.

Born Chester Arthur Burnett, June 10, 1910, in West Point, MS; died of complications from kidney disease January 10, 1976, in Chicago, IL; son of Dock and Gertrude Burnett (plantation workers); married first wife c. 1930s; married wife, Lillie, c. 1950s; children: (second marriage) Barbara, Betty Jean. Religion: Southern Baptist.

Blues singer, guitarist, and harmonica player. Toured with fellow bluesmen, including Robert Johnson and Sonny Boy Williamson c. 1930s. Worked as singer, producer, and advertising salesman at KWEM Radio in West Memphis, TN. Released first album in 1951 on Chess Records; toured the U.S. and Europe, with Chicago as his primary venue, 1952-c. 1976. Appeared in short film Wolf, 1971. Military service: U.S. Army, stationed in Seattle, WA.

Awards: Honorary doctor of arts degree from Columbia College, Chicago, 1972; Montreux Festival award for album Back Door Wolf, 1975.

Albums:

Big City Blues, United, 1966.

The Real Folk Blues (recorded c. 1956-65), Chess, 1966.

(With Hubert Sumlin, Otis Spann, Willie Dixon, and others) More Real Folk Blues (recorded c. 1953-57), Chess, 1967.

The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions (featuring Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, and The Rolling Stones), Chess, 1971.

Message to the Young, Chess, 1971.

The Back Door Wolf, Chess, 1973.

Change My Way, Chess, 1977.

Moanin' in the Moonlight (recorded 1951-59), Chess, reissue, 1987.

Cadillac Daddy: Memphis Recordings, 1952, Rounder, 1989.

Chicago: 26 Golden Years, Chess.

His Greatest Sides, Vol. 1, Chess.

Howlin' Wolf: Moanin' in the Moonlight, Chess.

Live and Cookin' at Alice's Restaurant, Chess.

Evil, Chess.

Howlin' Wolf: Chess Blues Masters, Chess.

The Legendary Sun Performers: Howlin' Wolf (British import), Charly.

I'm the Wolf, Vogue.

This Is Howlin' Wolf's New Album (British import), Cadet C.

From Early til Late, Blue Night.

Going Back Home (British import), Syndicate Chapter.

Heart Like Railroad Steel: Rare and Unreleased Recordings, Vol. 1, Blues Ball.

Can't Put Me Out: Rare and Unreleased Recordings, Vol. 2, Blues Ball.

Ridin' in the Moonlight, Ace.

Sources: Cub Koda, All Music Guide; artistdirect.com; B. Kimberly Taylor

This information is provided as a brief overview and not as a definitive guide, there are other sources on the net for that. If however you have a story or information that is not generally known we would love to hear from you. Content@rokpool.com

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The first Supergroup, formed in 1966, Cream consisted of Jack Bruce (formally of Blues Incorperated) on bass and vocals, Eric Clapton (formally of The Yardbirds) lead guitar and Ginger Baker (formally of Graham Bond Organisation) on drums.

All three musicians were hugely respected coming from a background of influential and cutting edge bands, with strong blues influences. The music they made was guitar driven, Clapton creating some great and enduring rifts, whilst the music had psychedelic overtones as was de rigure for the time. Tensions within the group ( just imagine those egos!) led to the early break up of the band, which probably never achieved its full potential.

Although they were only together for two years, Cream were influential to the greatest in todays music as well as the music in the late 60s. Not only were they the first band to adopt and master the trio format of a band, but they lay the foundations of blues and hard rock for the 60s and 70s. Even though many critics see them as overated (as they were only together for two years not because they were not good), Eric Clapton came out of the band a new man as he was cited as one of the best guitarists at the time (and still).

All three of the musicians yearned to break free of the confines of the standard rock/R&B/blues group, in a unit that would allow them greater instrumental and improvisational freedom, somewhat in the mold of a jazz outfit. Eric Clapton's stunning guitar solos would get much of the adulation, yet Bruce was at least as responsible for shaping the group's sound, singing most of the material in his rich voice. He also wrote their best original compositions, sometimes in collaboration with outside lyricist Pete Brown. 

Cream's first album 'Fresh Cream' went top ten in the UK in 1967. The singles included; 'N.S.U' and 'I Feel Free'. Their follow up album 'Disraeli Gears' was released later that year. Here they fashioned invigorating, sometimes beguiling hard-driving psychedelic pop, which included plenty of memorable melodies and effective harmonies along with the expected crunching riffs. Singles included; 'Strange Brew', 'Dance the 'Night Away', 'Tales of Brave Ulysses' and 'S.W.L.A.B.R.' as well as their hit US single 'Sunshine Of Your Love'. Their final album together would be the double album 'Wheels On Fire'.

Cream reformed (not permanently) performing at the Royal Albert Hall in London and Madison Square Garden in New York in 2005. 

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Eric Clapton, CBE, was born on the 30th March 1945, in Surrey, England. “Slowhand”, as he has been nicknamed, is a Grammy Award winning composer, singer and guitarist, who is regarded as being one of the most influential artist of the rock era.

Clapton was 13 when he first began to play the guitar and nearly gave up because he found playing an electric guitar so difficult. He joined his first group, The Roosters, in 1963. He later went on the join The Yardbirds, appearing on their 1964 recording "Five Live Yardbirds", which showed off his talent at playing blues guitar. In 1965, John Mayall asked the upcoming blues-star to join his group, The Bluesbreakers. He played with Mayall for ten years. In 1967 the words ‘Clapton is God’ were sprayed on a wall in Islington Underground. After this Clapton joined the band Cream, although this lasted barely two years.

It was in 1970 that Clapton went solo releasing the double album "Layla" which became one of the cornerstone rock records of the Seventies. After the release of this album, Clapton became addicted to drugs and became evermore reclusive apart from a concert in 1971 where he passed out on stage, was revived and finished the concert! January 1973 gave way to a comeback for the recovered star, which reintroduced him to public performing. His solo career began to really kick off with the release of "461 Ocean Boulevard" a year later topping the charts. Clapton's cover of Bob Marley's ‘I Shot the Sheriff’ proved to be a massive success.

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Through the 1980s Clapton released a live album, two further albums and created his own record label, Duck Records. In 1991 tragedy struck when his 4 year old son, Conor fell out of a 53rd storey window. Clapton expressed his grief with his track "Tears in Heaven". Between "Tears in Heaven" and his "Unplugged" album he won a total of 6 Grammys that year. 1998 saw Clapton win critical acclaim for his performances with Carlos Santana and B.B. King.

Since the turn of the century Clapton has kept himself busy performing with a myriad of artists across the world and he continues to be a major influence in all things musical. Rolling Stone rank him as the 4th Greatest Guitar Player of All Time!

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