In the U.S. it's Black History Month. Per the White House, "This National Black History Month, we celebrate the vast contributions of Black Americans to our country and recognize that Black history is American history and that Black culture, stories, and triumphs are at the core of who we are as a Nation." Hear, hear! That goes triple for the contribution to the music we listen to. Black Americans are responsible for 90% of what's considered American music. Where to start? I was mulling that over when I was talking to a friend today. He's in his late twenties. I mentioned Howlin' Wolf. He didn't know who he was. We can't have that.
I'm trusting you all know how to search for a Howlin' Wolf bio, so no regurgitating here. One thing I do want to point out. The songs below were all released on Chess Records with the exception of two, recorded by Sam Phillips at Sun. One of the songs, "Mr. Highway Man" is represented twice, one on Chess and one on Sun, so you can hear how much more raw the Sun sides were. Alas, per usual, the superior version was on the smaller label so it's also the lesser heard. I highly recommend starting with his stuff on Sun (entry at Discogs here).
Howlin' Wolf - Smokestack Lightnin' mp3 at Internet Archive Chess
Howlin' Wolf - Evil mp3 at Internet Archive Chess
Howlin' Wolf - Forty Four mp3 at Internet Archive Chess
Howlin' Wolf - Mr. Highway Man mp3 at Internet Archive Chess
Howlin' Wolf - Mr. Highway Man (streaming) at YouTube Sun
Howlin' Wolf - Howlin' Wolf Boogie mp3 at Internet Archive Sun
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