Hubert Sumlin
Quiet and extremely unassuming off the bandstand, Hubert Sumlin played a style of guitar incendiary enough to stand tall beside the immortal Howlin' Wolf. The Wolf was Sumlin's imposing mentor for more than two decades, and it proved a mutually beneficial relationship; Sumlin's twisting, darting, unpredictable lead guitar constantly energized the Wolf's 1960s Chess sides, even when the songs themselves (check out "Do the Do" or "Mama's Baby" for conclusive proof) were less than stellar. Sumlin started out twanging the proverbial broom wire nailed to the wall before he got his mitts on a real guitar. He grew up near West Memphis, Arkansas, briefly hooking up with another Young Lion with a rosy future, harpist James Cotton, before receiving a summons from the mighty Wolf to join him in Chicago in 1954. Sumlin learned his craft nightly on the bandstand behind Wolf, his confidence growing as he graduated from rhythm guitar duties to lead. By the dawn of the '60s, Sumlin's slashing axe was a prominent component on the great majority of Wolf's waxings, including "Wang Dang Doodle," "Shake for Me," "Hidden Charms" (boasting perhaps Sumlin's greatest recorded solo), "Three Hundred Pounds of Joy," and "Killing Floor."
Although they had a somewhat tempestuous relationship, Sumlin remained loyal to Wolf until the big man's 1976 death. But Sumlin cut a handful of solo sessions before that, beginning with a most unusual 1964 date in East Berlin that was produced by Horst Lippmann during a European tour under the auspices of the American Folk Blues Festival (the "behind the Iron Curtain" session also featured pianist Sunnyland Slim and bassist Willie Dixon). In subsequent years Sumlin allowed his vocal talents to shine, recording solo sets that revealed him to be an understated but effective singer -- while his guitar continued to communicate most forcefully. The esteem with which he was held by musicians of a later generation was ably demonstrated by the guest list on Sumlin's 2004 album About Them Shoes, including Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Levon Helm, and David Johansen, not to mention a noted bluesman from Sumlin's own past, harmonica player James Cotton, the old friend and bandmate who first played with Sumlin in West Memphis back in their teenage years of the early '50s, before Cotton joined up with Muddy Waters and moved to Chicago, paralleling Sumlin's own journey to the Windy City around the same time. He followed up About Them Shoes with Treblemaker in 2007. Hubert Sumlin died of heart failure in Wayne, New Jersey on December 4, 2011; he was 80 years old. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards paid for the bluesman's funeral expenses.
© Bill Dahl /TiVo
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Blues Guitar Boss
Blues - Released by JSP Records on 2 apr. 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Chicago Blues Session Vol. 22
Blues - Released by Wolf Records on 18 jun. 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
My Guitar And Me (1975) (Blues Reference)
Blues - Released by Disques Black & Blue on 1 jan. 1975
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Blues Guitar Boss
Blues - Released by JSP Records on 2 apr. 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Hubert Sumlin's Blues Party
Blues - Released by Shout! Factory on 1 jan. 2005
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Legends
Pinetop Perkins, Hubert Sumlin
Blues - Released by Telarc on 27 okt. 1998
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Howlin’ Wolf & His Wolf Gang (Live)
Blues - Released by Wolf Records International GmbH on 13 mei 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wake Up Call
Blues - Released by Blues Planet Records on 1 jan. 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Healing Feeling
Blues - Released by Shout! Factory on 1 jan. 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Heart Attack
Blues - Released by Blind Pig Records on 15 nov. 1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
I'm the Back Door Man
Blues - Released by RGS Music - Adrian Flores on 17 jan. 1993
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Made in Argentina 1993 (Live)
Blues - Released by RGS Music - Adrian Flores on 29 jan. 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
One Night Only!
Willie Dixon, Hubert Sumlin, Sunnland Slim
Blues - Released by Vintage Masters Inc. on 1 apr. 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Crawling King Snake b/w Hubert's Boogie
Blues - Released by zOaR Records on 29 jan. 2021
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Hubert Sumlin, Rod Piazza & The Mighty Flyers (Live)
Hubert Sumlin, Rod Piazza & The Mighty Flyers
Blues - Released by Cherry Red Records on 23 feb. 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Blues Anytime (Hd Remastered)
Blues - Released by Reborn recordings on 9 mei 2019
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Blues Anytime! (Hd Remastered Edition, Doxy Collection)
Hubert Sumlin, Willie Dixon, Sunnyland Slim
Blues - Released by Doxy Records on 5 mei 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo