The mesmerizing Howlin' Wolf goin' to work on Smokestack Lightning circa 1964. The song, written by Wolf, is based on one riff and no chord changes. It has been called "a distillation of the essence of the blues". "Smokestack Lightning" was based on "Crying at Daybreak", another earlier recorded song by Wolf which was based on "Moon Going Down" by Charley Patton. Wolf said the song was inspired by watching trains in the night: "We used to sit out in the country and see the trains go by, watch the sparks come out of the smokestack." Continue Reading...