Howlin' and More: Music That Lasts Forever

Some music will be around forever and once a year the Library of Congress makes sure of it. Last week for the ninth year in a row the LOC selected 25 recordings it will preserve in perpetuity. Most of the recordings are music of some type but others are spoken word, such as the Marine Corps Combat Field Recordings of the Second Battle of Guam (1944). Whether or not you're interested in the Guam recording (or a reading of The Little Engine That Could), here are a number of selections that should pique your interest and are well worth your time.





First off is "Smokestack Lightning" by Howlin' Wolf (1956). Providing the undercurrent of modern blues and defining the dirty edge of rock and roll, the Wolf was a scary and otherworldy sound coming over the airwaves in the 1950s. At that time radio was regional so what was happening in Clovis, NM, was isolated and not influenced by what was going on in Nashville, Chicago, L.A. or any other locale. Music and styles developed in a vacuum.

This was even more true where "Black" and "White" music was concerned. Any white kid listening to his (or her) transistor radio tucked under the cover late at night -- when the air was clear and radio waves traveled great distances -- trying to pick up messages from The Great Beyond would be scared to death of what was out there if he managed to bring in Howlin' Wolf. That's hard to understand today, with all music worldwide influencing other music worldwide, but click on Pat Boone's "Love Letters in the Sand" and follow it up with the "Smokestack Lightning" clip and you might get a sense of why Bob Dylan, John Fogerty, and thousands of others fell asleep with the lights on. And don't bother trying to figure out the "story" in Wolf's song; he's just upset.



Next up is "Tutti Frutti" by Little Richard (1955). Richard Penniman was a 22-year-old dishwasher when he recorded this song, giving us the unforgettable phrase, "A-wop-bop-a-loo-bop-a-lop-bam-boom." Like many breakthrough recordings, such as Elvis Presley's "That's All Right," this one was an accident. Penniman was in Cosimo Matassa’s New Orleans studio to record his first sides for Specialty Records -- and nothing was happening. He couldn't get loose, there was no rapport with the band, and no one was happy -- until he started screwing around between "serious" efforts at singing. He dug into the patter he relied on to dis his boss (patter the boss didn't know was meant for him) and the result is this rock and roll masterpiece that got everyone from The Beatles to Jimi Hendrix hopping. Like a lot of good rock Penniman's recorded version was "cleaned up," but you get the idea. And to hear how black music was "improved" for white audiences - and what Little Richard and Howlin' Wolf were up against -- check out Pat Boone's version of "Tutti Frutti."



But the LOC didn't only deal with popular music -- they honored jazz as well and they couldn't have picked a more important or inventive group than The Bill Evans Trio, selecting The Complete Village Vanguard Recordings of 1961. This is challenging music that can easily fade into the background -- but don't let it. Evans, pianist of the highest order, lead the trio which included Scott LaFaro on bass and Paul Motian on drums. And while communication among the players was undoubtedly helped by the club atmosphere, this is breakthrough stuff in its own right. Prior to this performance bass and drums were relegated to supporting roles, defining the background and bottom on top of which guitarists, pianists, trumpet players, and even vocalists played the melody.



But Evans took that on and integrated LaFaro and Motian as equal partners in exploring the melodies and intricacies of jazz standards and originals. The result was "must hear" classic records such as Waltz for Debbie and Sunday at the Village Vanguard. The complete recording of the night -- five sets worth -- was eventually released in 2005. The unfortunate thing is these are the only recordings of this risk-taking group as LaFaro was killed in an auto accident just 10 days later.

Other rock honored by the LOC includes Patti Smith's first LP, Horses, and The Band's second LP, The Band -- each well worth your time and effort to get to know.