2. music
  3. 1232051983

London Howling Wolf Sessions

I just picked up a 1989 vinyl reissue of this record and I dig it. Ordinarily I can't stand either Clapton or Winwood, but you can't argue with the rest of the band and I am a huge Wolf fan. With him singing it almost has a third-stream thing going on, a little Pigpen-Blues Dead sounding. Plus, its actually a pretty good recording. The one thing that's a bit lame is that whoever edited the record cut off any jamming at the end of the tunes. My question is, is there an expanded vinyl reissue with the full track length, or even an expanded cd? For that matter, are there any additional tracks not included on the original album?
grimace
grimace OP
624 posts
 
Oh, its definately an attempt to get white suburban kids, many of whom thought Eric Clapton WAS the blues, to hear some originals. It is a shame that the greats like Muddy and Wolf didn't get that recognition on their own.

Funny story: When I got married my wife was looking for a wedding song and she came to me with this "great" Art Garfunkle song, "I only Have Eyes For You" under the assumption that Art had written it. Yeesh! I have a new wife now btw.
chashmal
605 posts
 
IMO, the British bluesmen and their influence only drag Wolf down.
Give me the mid 50's-early 60's Chess material over that ANYTIME.
siliab
362 posts
 
While I agree that this recording is a pale (pun intended) reflection of the original Chess sides, the truth is that the Wolf was ailing during these sessions. While much less funky and hard hitting than the original crew his accompaniment is able if plodding. The bigger problem was that Chester sounded like he was mailing it in.
grimace OP
624 posts
 
I'd have to go with Chashmal on this one. There is a huge difference between a real Chicago backup band and a bunch of enthusiastic, but ultimately lilly-white british kids.

I listened to a couple of all-American Chess recordings and there's just no comparison.
chashmal
605 posts
 
Wolf, Sonnyboy Williamson, Muddy, Little Walter, Elmore James: one of the true a highlights of American music. Tragic lives those guys had with very little reward until it was too late, and for Elmo none at all.

I think the CD's really can't do it justice. Only the vinyl does it for me, and the original 45's in particular. The 70's reissue LP's can be great too.
More to discover