Evil (Howlin' Wolf song)
| "Evil" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| B-side | "Baby How Long" |
"Evil", sometimes listed as "Evil (Is Going On)", is a Chicago blues standard written by Willie Dixon.[2] Howlin' Wolf recorded the song for Chess Records in 1954.[3] It was included on the 1959 compilation album Moanin' in the Moonlight. When he re-recorded it for The Howlin' Wolf Album in 1969, "Evil" became Wolf's last charting single (#43 Billboard R&B chart).[4]
The 1954 song features sidemen Hubert Sumlin and Jody Williams (guitars), Otis Spann (piano), Willie Dixon (double-bass), and Earl Phillips (drums). Wolf achieves a coarse, emotional performance with his strained singing, lapsing into falsetto.[5] The song, a twelve-bar blues, is punctuated with a syncopated backbeat, brief instrumental improvisations, upper-end piano figures, and intermittent blues harp provided by Wolf.[5] The lyrics caution about the "evil" that takes place in a man's home when he is away, concluding with "you better watch your happy home".[5]
The song has been recorded by numerous artists, including: Luther Allison, Canned Heat, Captain Beefheart, Derek and the Dominos, Gary Moore, Cactus, The Faces, Dee Snider (with Widowmaker), Jake E. Lee, Monster Magnet, and Steve Miller. Koko Taylor's version of the song appeared in the 1987 film Adventures in Babysitting. Tom Jones recorded a version of the song in 2011, produced by Jack White. It includes a snippet of The Doors' "Wild Child". Jace Everett and C. C. Adcock also recorded a version, which was used as the featured song for the third season finale of the HBO series True Blood.
References
- ^ a b Chess Blues 1947-1967 (CD liner). Various artists. United States: Chess/MCA Records. 1992. CHD4-9340.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Muddy Waters' "Evil" is a different song, credited to Morganfield aka Waters (1957 Chess 1680)
- ^
Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). Encyclopedia of the Blues. University of Arkansas Press. p. 268. ISBN 1-55728-252-8.
{{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ Whitburn, Joel (1988). Top R&B Singles 1942–1988. Record Research, Inc. p. 198. ISBN 0-89820-068-7.
- ^ a b c Floyd, Samuel A. (1995). The Power of Black Music. Oxford University Press. pp. 176–177. ISBN 0-19-508235-4.