His Best (Howlin' Wolf album)
Encyclopedia
His Best is a greatest hits
compilation album
by American
blues
musician Howlin' Wolf
. The album was originally released on April 8, 1997 by MCA
and Chess Records
. The album was a part of the 50th anniversary of Chess Records, which was in that same year (see 1997 in music
). Ten years later, on April 17, 2007, the album was re-released by Chess and Geffen Records
as The Definitive Collection.
The album features several of his most famous songs including "Smokestack Lightnin'
", "Spoonful
", and "Killing Floor".
on either May 14 or August 1951 and these two songs were produced
by Sam Phillips
, who would later produce Elvis Presley
and Johnny Cash
. The rest of the songs on the album were recorded in Chicago
, Illinois
on May 25, 1954("Evil
"), October 1954("Forty-Four
"), January 1956("Smokestack Lightnin'"), July 19, 1956("I Asked for Water"), June 24, 1957 ("Who's Been Talkin'"), December 1957 ("Sitting on Top of the World
"), July 1959 ("Howlin' for My Darlin'"), July 1960("Wang Dang Doodle
", "Back Door Man
", "Spoonful"), June 1961("Shake for Me", "The Red Rooster
"), December 1961("I Ain't Superstitious", "Goin' Down Slow
"), August 13, 1963("Three Hundred Pounds of Joy", "Hidden Charms", "Built for Comfort"), and August 1964 ("Killing Floor"). These songs were originally produced by either the Chess brothers, Leonard
and Phil
, and/or Willie Dixon
, who recorded numerous artists for Chess Records. The re-issue production was handled by Andy McKaie and the digital remastering
was handled by Erick Labson.
was Vartan, the album was design
ed by Mike Fink. The photograph
s for the album were credited to Brian Smith, Joseph Sia, Frank Driggs, Ray Flerlage, Peter Amft, John Gibbs Rockwood, and the Universal Music Archives. The liner notes
for the album were written by Mark Humphrey.
Greatest hits
A greatest hits album is a music compilation album of successful, previously released songs by a particular artist or band...
compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
by American
People of the United States
The people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musician Howlin' Wolf
Howlin' Wolf
Chester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
. The album was originally released on April 8, 1997 by MCA
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
and Chess Records
Chess Records
Chess Records was an American record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, soul, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
. The album was a part of the 50th anniversary of Chess Records, which was in that same year (see 1997 in music
1997 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1997.-January:*January 9 – David Bowie performs his 50th Birthday Bash concert at Madison Square Garden, New York City, USA with guests Frank Black, The Foo Fighters, Sonic Youth, Robert Smith of The Cure, Lou Reed, and Billy...
). Ten years later, on April 17, 2007, the album was re-released by Chess and Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
as The Definitive Collection.
The album features several of his most famous songs including "Smokestack Lightnin'
Smokestack Lightning
"Smokestack Lightning" is a classic of the blues. In 1956, Howlin' Wolf recorded the song and it became one of his most popular and influential songs...
", "Spoonful
Spoonful
"Spoonful" is a blues standard written by Willie Dixon and first recorded in 1960 by Howlin' Wolf. It is loosely based on "A Spoonful Blues", a song recorded in 1929 by Charley Patton , itself related to "All I Want Is A Spoonful" by Papa Charlie Jackson and "Cocaine Blues" by Luke Jordan...
", and "Killing Floor".
Recording and production
The first two songs on the collection, "Moanin' at Midnight" and "How Many More Years", were recorded at Memphis Recording ServiceSun Studio
Sun Studio is a recording studio opened by rock pioneer Sam Phillips at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, on January 3, 1950. It was originally called Memphis Recording Service, sharing the same building with the Sun Records label business...
on either May 14 or August 1951 and these two songs were produced
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
by Sam Phillips
Sam Phillips
Samuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American businessman, record executive, record producer and DJ who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
, who would later produce Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
and Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
. The rest of the songs on the album were recorded in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
on May 25, 1954("Evil
Evil (Howlin' Wolf song)
"Evil", sometimes listed as "Evil ", is a Chicago blues standard written by Willie Dixon. Howlin' Wolf, also known as Chester Burnett, recorded the song for Chess Records in 1954. It was included on the 1959 compilation album Moanin' in the Moonlight...
"), October 1954("Forty-Four
Forty-Four (song)
"Forty-Four" or "44 Blues" is a blues standard whose origins have been traced back to early 1920s Louisiana. However, it was Roosevelt Sykes, who provided the lyrics and first recorded it in 1929, that helped popularize the song...
"), January 1956("Smokestack Lightnin'"), July 19, 1956("I Asked for Water"), June 24, 1957 ("Who's Been Talkin'"), December 1957 ("Sitting on Top of the World
Sitting on Top of the World
"Sitting on Top of the World" is a folk-blues song written by Walter Vinson and Lonnie Chatmon, core members of the Mississippi Sheiks, a popular country blues band of the 1930s...
"), July 1959 ("Howlin' for My Darlin'"), July 1960("Wang Dang Doodle
Wang Dang Doodle
"Wang Dang Doodle" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon for Howlin' Wolf at Chess Records in Chicago. It has been covered by many artists, including Love Sculpture, Koko Taylor, Z. Z. Hill, Ted Nugent, the Pointer Sisters, PJ Harvey, Grateful Dead, Ratdog, Savoy Brown, Charlie Watts, Booker T....
", "Back Door Man
Back Door Man
"Back Door Man" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon and recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1961. It was released by Chess Records as the B-side to Wolf's "Wang Dang Doodle"...
", "Spoonful"), June 1961("Shake for Me", "The Red Rooster
Little Red Rooster
"Little Red Rooster" is a song that is a classic of the blues. Howlin' Wolf recorded "The Red Rooster" in 1961, a song credited to blues arranger and songwriter Willie Dixon, although earlier songs have been cited as inspiration...
"), December 1961("I Ain't Superstitious", "Goin' Down Slow
Goin' Down Slow
"Goin' Down Slow" or "Going Down Slow" is a blues song written by St. Louis Jimmy Oden, originally released in 1941. Howlin' Wolf included the song on his 1962 Rocking Chair Album.The song alternates between sung and spoken passages...
"), August 13, 1963("Three Hundred Pounds of Joy", "Hidden Charms", "Built for Comfort"), and August 1964 ("Killing Floor"). These songs were originally produced by either the Chess brothers, Leonard
Leonard Chess
Leonard Chess was a record company executive and the founder of Chess Records. He was influential in the development of electric blues.- Early life :...
and Phil
Phil Chess
Philip Chess is an American record producer and company executive, the co-founder of Chess Records.He was born Fiszel Czyż in a Jewish community in Częstochowa, Poland. He and his brother Lejzor, sister Malka and mother followed their father to Chicago in 1928...
, and/or Willie Dixon
Willie Dixon
William James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
, who recorded numerous artists for Chess Records. The re-issue production was handled by Andy McKaie and the digital remastering
Audio mastering
Mastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
was handled by Erick Labson.
Artwork, packaging
The album's art directorArt director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
was Vartan, the album was design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
ed by Mike Fink. The photograph
Photograph
A photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s for the album were credited to Brian Smith, Joseph Sia, Frank Driggs, Ray Flerlage, Peter Amft, John Gibbs Rockwood, and the Universal Music Archives. The liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
for the album were written by Mark Humphrey.
Track listing
- "Moanin' at Midnight" (Chester BurnettHowlin' WolfChester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
) – 2:56 - "How Many More Years" (Willie DixonWillie DixonWilliam James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
) – 2:43 - "Evil (Is Going On)Evil (Howlin' Wolf song)"Evil", sometimes listed as "Evil ", is a Chicago blues standard written by Willie Dixon. Howlin' Wolf, also known as Chester Burnett, recorded the song for Chess Records in 1954. It was included on the 1959 compilation album Moanin' in the Moonlight...
" (Burnett) – 2:55 - "Forty-FourForty-Four (song)"Forty-Four" or "44 Blues" is a blues standard whose origins have been traced back to early 1920s Louisiana. However, it was Roosevelt Sykes, who provided the lyrics and first recorded it in 1929, that helped popularize the song...
" (Burnett) – 2:49 - "Smokestack Lightnin'Smokestack Lightning"Smokestack Lightning" is a classic of the blues. In 1956, Howlin' Wolf recorded the song and it became one of his most popular and influential songs...
" (Burnett) – 3:09 - "I Asked for Water (She Gave Me Gasoline)" (Burnett) – 2:52
- "Who's Been Talkin'" (Burnett) – 2:24
- "Sitting on Top of the WorldSitting on Top of the World"Sitting on Top of the World" is a folk-blues song written by Walter Vinson and Lonnie Chatmon, core members of the Mississippi Sheiks, a popular country blues band of the 1930s...
" (Walter VinsonWalter VinsonWalter Vinson was an American Memphis blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was a member of the Mississippi Sheiks, worked with Bo Chatmon and his brothers, and co-wrote the blues standard, "Sitting on Top of the World"...
, Lonnie Chatmon; arr.ArrangementThe American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
Burnett) – 2:34 - "Howlin' for My Darlin'" (Burnett, Dixon) – 2:33
- "Wang Dang DoodleWang Dang Doodle"Wang Dang Doodle" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon for Howlin' Wolf at Chess Records in Chicago. It has been covered by many artists, including Love Sculpture, Koko Taylor, Z. Z. Hill, Ted Nugent, the Pointer Sisters, PJ Harvey, Grateful Dead, Ratdog, Savoy Brown, Charlie Watts, Booker T....
" (Dixon) – 2:25 - "Back Door ManBack Door Man"Back Door Man" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon and recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1961. It was released by Chess Records as the B-side to Wolf's "Wang Dang Doodle"...
" (Dixon) – 2:51 - "SpoonfulSpoonful"Spoonful" is a blues standard written by Willie Dixon and first recorded in 1960 by Howlin' Wolf. It is loosely based on "A Spoonful Blues", a song recorded in 1929 by Charley Patton , itself related to "All I Want Is A Spoonful" by Papa Charlie Jackson and "Cocaine Blues" by Luke Jordan...
" (Dixon) – 2:45 - "Shake for Me" (Dixon) – 2:18
- "The Red RoosterLittle Red Rooster"Little Red Rooster" is a song that is a classic of the blues. Howlin' Wolf recorded "The Red Rooster" in 1961, a song credited to blues arranger and songwriter Willie Dixon, although earlier songs have been cited as inspiration...
" (Dixon) – 2:29 - "I Ain't Superstitious" (Dixon) – 2:56
- "Goin' Down SlowGoin' Down Slow"Goin' Down Slow" or "Going Down Slow" is a blues song written by St. Louis Jimmy Oden, originally released in 1941. Howlin' Wolf included the song on his 1962 Rocking Chair Album.The song alternates between sung and spoken passages...
" (James B. OdenSt. Louis Jimmy OdenJames Burke "St. Louis Jimmy" Oden was an American blues vocalist and songwriter.Born in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, Oden sang and taught himself to play the piano in childhood. In his teens, he left home to go to St. Louis, Missouri where piano-based blues was prominent...
) – 4:04 - "Three Hundred Pounds of Joy" (Dixon) – 3:07
- "Hidden Charms" (Dixon) – 2:23
- "Built for Comfort" (Dixon) – 2:39
- "Killing Floor" (Burnett) – 2:49
Personnel
- Howlin' WolfHowlin' WolfChester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Willie Johnson – guitar
- Willie Steele – drumDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
s on "Moanin' at Midnight" and "How Many More Years" - Ike TurnerIke TurnerIsaac Wister Turner was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, arranger, talent scout, and record producer. In a career that lasted more than half a century, his repertoire included blues, soul, rock, and funk...
– pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
on "How Many More Years" - Albert Williams – piano on "How Many More Years"
- Sam PhillipsSam PhillipsSamuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American businessman, record executive, record producer and DJ who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
– producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
on "Moanin' at Midnight" and "How Many More Years" - Otis SpannOtis SpannOtis Spann was an American blues musician, who many consider the leading postwar Chicago blues pianist.-Career:Born in Jackson, Mississippi, United States, Spann became known for his distinct piano style....
– piano - Jody WilliamsJody Williams (blues musician)Joseph Leon Williams , better known as Jody Williams, is an American blues guitarist and singer. His singular guitar playing, marked by flamboyant string-bending, imaginative chord changes and a distinctive tone, was influential in the Chicago blues scene of the 1950s.-Career:In the mid 1950s,...
– guitar on "Evil (Is Going On)" and "Forty-Four" - Hubert SumlinHubert SumlinHubert Sumlin is an American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist and singer, best known for his celebrated work, from 1955, as guitarist in Howlin' Wolf's band. His singular playing is characterized by "wrenched, shattering bursts of notes, sudden cliff-hanger silences and daring rhythmic...
– guitar - Willie DixonWillie DixonWilliam James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
– vocals on "Goin' Down Slow", bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
, producer - Earl Phillips – drums
- Hosea Lee Kennard – piano
- Otis "Smokey" SmothersOtis "Big Smokey" SmothersOtis "Big Smokey" Smothers was an African American, Chicago blues guitarist and singer. He was once a member of Howlin' Wolf's backing band, and worked variously with Muddy Waters, Jimmy Rogers, Bo Diddley, Ike Turner, J. T. Brown, Freddie King, Little Johnny Jones, Little Walter, and Willie Dixon...
– guitar on "I Asked for Water" and "Who's Been Talkin'" - Adolph "Billy" Duncan – tenor saxophoneTenor saxophoneThe tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble...
on "Who's Been Talkin'" - Alfred Elkins – bass on "Who's Been Talkin'" and "Sitting on Top of the World"
- Abb Locke – tenor saxophone on "Howlin' for My Darlin'"
- S. P. Leary – drums on "Howlin' for My Darlin'"
- Abe SmothersLittle Smokey SmothersLittle Smokey Smothers was an African American, Chicago blues guitarist and singer.His elder brother, Otis , was known as the bluesman Otis "Big Smokey" Smothers, with whom he was sometimes confused....
– guitar on "Howlin' for My Darlin'" - Freddy KingFreddie KingFreddie King , thought to have been born as Frederick Christian, originally recording as Freddy King, and nicknamed "the Texas Cannonball", was an influential African-American blues guitarist and singer. He is often mentioned as one of "the Three Kings" of electric blues guitar, along with Albert...
– guitar - Freddie RobinsonAbu Talib (musician)Abu Talib was an African American blues and jazz guitarist, singer, and harmonica player.-Career:...
– guitar - Fred BelowFred BelowFred Below was a leading blues drummer, best known for his innovative work with Little Walter and Chess Records in the 1950s. Nobody laid more of the Chicago blues rhythmic foundations, particularly its archetypal backbeat, than Fred Below.-Career:He was born in Chicago, and started playing drums...
– drums - Johnny Jones – piano on "Shake for Me" and "The Red Rooster"
- Jimmy RogersJimmy RogersJimmy Rogers was an American Chicago blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player, best known for his work as a member of Muddy Waters' band of the 1950s.-Career:...
– guitar - Henry GrayHenry Gray (musician)Henry Gray is an African-American blues piano player and singer. He has been playing for more than seven decades, and has played with a multitude of artists including Robert Lockwood, Jr., Billy Boy Arnold, Morris Pejoe, the Rolling Stones, Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf among many others...
– piano on "I Ain't Superstitious" and "Goin' Down Slow" - Sam LaySam LaySam Lay is an American drummer and vocalist, who has been performing since the late 1950s.-Life and career:...
– drums - J. T. BrownJ. T. BrownJ. T. Brown was an American tenor saxophonist of the Chicago blues era. He was variously billed as Saxman Brown, J.T. Brown and Bep Brown.-Biography:...
– tenor saxophone - Donald Hankins – baritone saxophoneBaritone saxophoneThe baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" , is one of the largest and lowest pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax. The baritone is distinguished from smaller sizes of saxophone by the extra loop near its mouthpiece...
- Lafayette LeakeLafayette LeakeLafayette Leake was a blues and jazz pianist, organist, vocalist and composer who played for Chess Records as a session musician, and as a member of the Big Three Trio, during the formative years of Chicago blues. He played piano on many of Chuck Berry's recordings.-Biography:Leake was born in...
– piano - Buddy GuyBuddy GuyGeorge "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, guitar on "Killing Floor" - Leonard ChessLeonard ChessLeonard Chess was a record company executive and the founder of Chess Records. He was influential in the development of electric blues.- Early life :...
– producer - Phil ChessPhil ChessPhilip Chess is an American record producer and company executive, the co-founder of Chess Records.He was born Fiszel Czyż in a Jewish community in Częstochowa, Poland. He and his brother Lejzor, sister Malka and mother followed their father to Chicago in 1928...
– producer - Andy McKaie – producer, compiler
- Erick Labson – digital remasteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...