Simply A Masterpiece

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Excellent but underrated film

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

Howlin' Wolf, aka Chester Burnett, came out of the deep south, out of the fields of Mississippi, out of a super-religious mother who stuck so firmly to her guns that Blues was "the devil's music" that she never spoke to her son for decades, out of racism and hardship, and made his own original, vibrant kind of music. He wasn't alone, as others like Muddy Waters came into prominence (and, according to a special feature on the DVD that should have been included with the rest of the doc, had a rivalry for some time), and shook up popular music first for black audiences and then slowly but firmly whites.It's a remarkable journey, told with not a whole lot of style as a kind of direct-to-video approach, with a plethora of good facts and some humbling opinions (one of Wolf's closest musician friends and band-mates, Hubert Sumlin, provides the most entertaining anecdotes as a die-hard blues-man through and through). Plus, of course, the music, with some rare performances and even some home movies shot at Chicago clubs, of the Wolf's presence and magnetism coming out in strong forcefulness as he does crazy things on stage like lick his guitar and crawl on all fours. Whatever you want to say about his music it's inarguable that he doesn't get your attention, if only through that distinctive voice that's a sounds like it's been run-over and resurrected as an all-powerful bad-ass.Thankfully, too, in such a short running time, there's a limit of how much drama there usually is in a musician-bio pic. Then again, Howlin' Wolf wasn't as naughty as other musicians: he didn't sleep around as a ladies's man (at least, from the doc's perspective, as much as say Muddy Waters), was a devoted husband and father, stayed away from drugs and most drink (he was so against it he openly criticized Son House during a performance), and only had his one real stinging problem being a lack of communication with his mother. While one wishes the movie was longer- more detailed, more infused with that pure air of rhythm and blues- what's here is enough to whet the appetite. At the least you'll want to put on some Wolf on the stereo right away or rush out to find some kind of record. He wasn't maybe the #1 best blues-man in America, but he certainly left his mark like only few others did. This doc is a good tribute to the Wolf's spirit.

I watched this documentary right after finishing the Howlin' Wolf biography "Moanin' At Midnight" written by James Segrest and Mark Hoffman, so I have to start by saying that the book is a masterpiece in Blues literature. It reads like a biography should, and not just the compilation of random facts and educated guesses that most Blues biographies are. It ranges from comical to moving (a rarity in Blues Bio's)and tells a great story in the process. This DVD was a real letdown in comparison. There were some high spots. Sam's Lay's silent home movies were cool (seeing the Wolf and Sumlin on stage with Sonny Boy and Little Watler in the audience), as well as parts of the documentary throughout, but I was confused as to why they relied so heavily on the footage from the makeshift juke joint at the Newport Festival. There's a lot of better Wolf performance footage out there, like the remainder of the European tour footage that wasn't used here. I've never seen footage where Wolf's own performance wasn't top notch, but the other players were out of tune and at their sloppiest here. Besides that, way too much effort was put into showing how badly Son House had deteriorated. They came back to the subject several times and I thought it was cruelly unnecessary. We all know he was a pitiful drunk at the end, and a disappointment to Wolf who had idolized him, but this point could have been made in one short statement. Did they bother to showcase how great he was in his prime (or could still be when sober)? No, because this movie wasn't about Son House (although I wondered at one point and had to check the title on the box). The juke footage was shot within a few years of the Son House footage that Yazoo Records released in their "Masters Of The Country Blues" series. It's a wonderful performance. Even though he was old and things weren't working the way they had 30 years earlier, there was still a lot of power and passion in the performances and a quiet dignity in the man. It's just too bad that the producer (Joe Lauro) and director (Don McGlynn) of the Wolf documentary seemed determined not to leave him any. Aside from that, it was an OK film. Hubert Sumlin's spots were entertaining as well as the interviews with Hubert's ex and Wolf's stepdaughters. I would like to rate this DVD higher, but if you want a great story, read the book. As a biography this movie only touches on spots and leaves so much out. If you want to see the best Wolf footage, you'll only see some of it here.

should be required viewing by anyone with any interest in any type of rock music. Mr. Wolf is not only my choice as the single most important blues artist of the 20th century, he was also the most exciting live performer in any musical genre; Hendrix, the Stones and Iggy Pop combined might qualify as a decent opening act for Wolf. Mere words can not explain the power, excitement and explosive force that was Howlin Wolf. A unique and captivating singer, a strong harp player, a woefully underrated guitarist and a historically important songwriter; add all of that to the incredible live performances and you have the king of blues (and rock) artists.The film captured a handful of surviving bandmembers (hubert sumlin, jody williams, sam lay) and mixed in some great archival footage of folks ranging from Muddy Waters to Son House to Brian Jones (his "How-LING Wolf" intro on Shindig was good for a laugh). Wolf is easily at the top of my list of artists I regret not seeing in person, but this film did a good job of giving us the next best thing. If it comes up short in any area, it doesn't offer that much actual live performance footage. But the 50s/60s era bluesmen were completely ignored by USA television during this time, so little or NO commercial footage exists for these extremely important musicians. Fortunately, the American Film Blues Festival (1962 to 1969) brought many of these artists over to Europe for an annual tour that was regularly filmed for Euro television audiences. A three volume DVD set has been released in the past couple of years and volume 2 has an incredible 3 song segment by Wolf. The "Howlin Wolf Story" and all 3 volumes of the AFBF series might be the best return on $60 imaginable.

This is the best blues documentary ever (not like those crappy TV series) and its a must for any music or rock fan, an invaluable piece of history (just take a look at those shots from Sam Lay's Camera back in the old glory days of Chicago Blues), any blues fan will love this film, and it is fun ennough to watch for any person... too bad that it is not very well known as it deserves (guess that why this film DOES GOT THE BLUES) The life of Chester Burnett (greatest bluesman ever!) is told tru the memories of those who ever work with him or share a stage with him (highlighs on one of the Chess brothers, Wolf's daughters, harpplayer bb arnold, and off course Mr Hubert Sumlin a real guitar god)we'll see some footage avaible before in other places but together for the first time with the above mentioned club footage...This is a really well done documentary, the one blues fans were waiting for, i recommend also the Wolf's biography "Moaning at Midnight" recently published