With a booming voice and looming physical presence, Burnett is commonly ranked among the leading performers in electric blues; musician and critic Cub Koda declared, "no one could match Howlin' Wolf for the singular ability to rock the house down to the foundation while simultaneously scaring its patrons out of its wits." A number of songs written or popularized by Burnett—such as "Smokestack Lightnin'", "Back Door Man", "Killing Floor" and "Spoonful"—have become blues and blues rock standards.
At 6 feet, 6 inches (198 cm) and close to 300 pounds (136 kg), he was an imposing presence with one of the loudest and most memorable voices of all the "classic" 1950s Chicago blues singers. This rough-edged, slightly fearsome musical style is often contrasted with the less crude but still powerful presentation of his contemporary and professional rival, Muddy Waters. Howlin' Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson (Rice Miller), Little Walter Jacobs, and Muddy Waters are usually regarded in retrospect as the greatest blues artists who recorded for Chess in Chicago. Sam Phillips once remarked, "When I heard Howlin' Wolf, I said, 'This is for me. This is where the soul of man never dies.'" In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him #51 on their list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".
Burnett died at Hines VA Hospital in Hines, Illinois on January 10, 1976 and was buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Hillside, Cook County, Illinois in a plot in Section 18, on the east side of the road. His large gravestone, allegedly purchased by Eric Clapton, has an image of a guitar and harmonica etched into it.
The Howlin' Wolf Memorial Blues Festival is held each year in West Point, Mississippi. Wolf's Juke Joint Jam is another annual Howlin' Wolf tribute festival held in West Point. Some of the artists who have played 'Wolf Jam' include Wolf's lead guitarist Hubert Sumlin, Muddy Waters' back band of Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Calvin "Fuzz" Jones and "Steady Rollin" Bob Margolin, Willie King, Blind Mississippi Morris, Kenny Brown, Burnside Exploration, etc. The festival is held at the 500-acre (2.0 km2) festival grounds known as Waverly Waters Resort.
A popular music venue in New Orleans, Louisiana was named The Howlin' Wolf when it opened in 1988.
Burnett was portrayed by Eamonn Walker in the 2008 motion picture Cadillac Records.
My Country Sugar Mama
Howlin' Wolf Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now just tell me sugar mama, where in the world did you get your sugar from
Way down in Louisiana, you come off of your father's sugar farm
I like my coffee in the mornin', woman I'm crazy about my tea at night
I like my coffee in the mornin', crazy about my tea at night
If I don't get my sugar three times a day, oh darlin' I don't feel right
You know they're braggin' about your good sugar, you know they're braggin' all over town
You know they're braggin' about your sugar babe, you know they're braggin' all over town
They say that's granulated sugar, best ever to come off the farm
The lyrics of "My Country Sugar Mama" by Howlin' Wolf are about a man who is infatuated with his lover's sweetness. He wants to know the source of her sweetness, asking her where she gets her sugar from. He suspects it must be from her father's sugar farm, which is located in Louisiana. The singer is an avid coffee and tea drinker and he likes the beverages sweetened with sugar. He says that he needs to have sugar three times a day, or else he feels incomplete.
The song is a metaphor for a sweet lover. The sugar that the singer craves so much could represent the attention and love that he needs. He needs his lover's sweetness to survive and feels incomplete without it. The song is also suggestive of the time when sugar was a rare, exotic luxury in many parts of America, particularly the rural south. The singer's addiction to sugar is a reflection of the intoxicating allure of things that are hard to come by.
Line by Line Meaning
Now just tell me sugar mama, where in the world did you get your sugar from
Asking where the sugar mama obtained her sugar from.
Way down in Louisiana, you come off of your father's sugar farm
Speculating that the sugar mama comes from a sugar farm in Louisiana.
I like my coffee in the mornin', woman I'm crazy about my tea at night
Expressing his preference for coffee in the morning and tea at night.
If I don't get my sugar three times a day, oh darlin' I don't feel right
Stating that he needs sugar three times a day to feel good.
You know they're braggin' about your good sugar, you know they're braggin' all over town
Acknowledging that people are praising the sugar mama's sugar all over town.
(Spoken: what they sayin' about you)
Asking the sugar mama what people are saying about her sugar.
They say that's granulated sugar, best ever to come off the farm
Sharing that people are describing the sugar as the best granulated sugar to come from a farm.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: CHESTER BURNETT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind