Wiki
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Release Date
1959
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Length
12 tracks
Moanin' in the Moonlight was the first full-length album by American blues singer Howlin' Wolf. The album was a compilation of previously-issued singles by Chess Records. It was originally released by Chess Records as a mono-format LP record in 1959 (see 1959 in music). The album has been reissued several times, including a vinyl reissue in 1969 titled Evil. The two earliest songs on Moanin' in the Moonlight were "Moanin' at Midnight" and "How Many More Years". These two songs were recorded at Sam Phillips' Memphis Recording Service in Memphis, Tennessee on May 14, 1951 or August 1951. These two songs were sold to the Chess brothers, Leonard and Phil, who released them as a single on August 15, 1951. The rest of the songs on the album were recorded in Chicago, Illinois and were produced by either the Chess brothers and/or Willie Dixon. The original version of Moanin' in the Moonlight featured cover artwork by Don S. Bronstein and sleeve notes by Billboard editor Paul Ackerman.
In 1987 Moanin' in the Moonlight was given a W.C. Handy Award under the category of "Vintage/Reissue Album (US)". Rolling Stone magazine ranked the album as #153 on their list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Robert Palmer has cited "How Many More Years" (recorded May 1951) as the first record to feature a distorted power chord, played by Willie Johnson on the electric guitar.
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