Howlin' Wolf (1910–1976)

US blues singer, songwriter, harmonica player, and guitarist. His music was characterized by a harsh, compelling vocal style. His most influential recordings, made in Chicago, feature the electric guitarist Hubert Sumlin (1931– ) and include ‘Smokestack Lightnin’ 1956, ‘Little Red Rooster’ 1961, and ‘Killin' Floor’ 1965.

Born in rural Mississippi, Wolf moved to Memphis, Tennessee, 1948. He formed a small band and made his first recordings for the Sun label there, before signing with the Chicago-based Chess label. Howlin' Wolf got his nickname from a habitual falsetto vocal call. He had a large, charismatic presence and his music is rough-edged and uncompromising. Most of his material was written by himself (‘Sitting On Top of the World’ 1957, ‘Wang Dang Doodle’ 1960) or Willie Dixon (1915–1992) (‘Spoonful’), or both (‘Back Door Man’).