Episode #152 Smokestack Lightning - Howlin' Wolf Lesson

The Blues Guitar Show

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In this episode we're looking at the blues classic Smokestack Lightning!
This is a great example of a 'one riff song' its totally hypnotic to play and has a great feel and groove to it.
At Chess' studio in Chicago in January 1956, Howlin' Wolf recorded "Smokestack Lightning".The song takes the form of "a propulsive, one-chord vamp, nominally in E major but with the flatted blue notes that make it sound like E minor", and lyrically it is "a pastiche of ancient blues lines and train references, timeless and evocative".Longtime Wolf guitarist Hubert Sumlin is credited with the distinctive guitar line.Howlin' Wolf sang and played harmonica, backed by pianist Hosea Lee Kennard, guitarists Willie Johnsonand Hubert Sumlin, bassist Willie Dixon, and drummer Earl Phillips.
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