The Anthology: 1947-1972
A folklorist recorded him on a Mississippi plantation in 1941. He heard the playback, decided he was good, and moved to Chicago.
★ 5.6
The Albums canon
Sourced and spun.
Every record chosen by hand and annotated for why it matters.
Browse all 542 records or filter by genre, artist, and year.
Browse all 542 records or filter by genre, artist, and year.
Howlin' Wolf
1962
Willie Dixon wrote most of the songs and Hubert Sumlin played the guitar, but the voice is what British bands spent the sixties copying.
★ 5.0
At Newport 1960
1960
The 1960 festival ended in a riot, but Muddy's set got out on record and half of Britain's guitarists learned it.
★ 4.5
Folk Singer
1964
Chess had him put down the electric guitar to chase the folk revival, and the result became a record audiophiles use to test their equipment.
★ 4.4
Moanin' in the Moonlight
1959
Wolf did not make a record until he was past forty, having farmed until then. This gathers the singles that followed.
★ 4.3
The Paul Butterfield Blues Band
1965
The band's rhythm section came straight out of Howlin' Wolf's group, and Butterfield had learned harmonica in Chicago clubs while still at university.
★ 3.9
Hoodoo Man Blues
1965
Buddy Guy played guitar but was credited as Friendly Chap, because he was signed to another label at the time.
★ 3.6