Killing Floor
Howlin' Wolf was an intimidating presence in the studio, demanding absolute precision from his band. In August 1964, guitarist Hubert Sumlin delivered a masterpiece: an intensely driving, angular, lightning-fast guitar riff that anchored "Killing Floor." Wolf belted out a grim tale of being metaphorically slaughtered by a ruthless woman, matching the frantic energy of Sumlin's fretwork. The track became a foundational text for British blues-rockers. Just five years later, Led Zeppelin aggressively lifted Sumlin's riff and Wolf's lyrics to build "The Lemon Song."
The floating-verse lineage for this recording (who else recorded it, where the melody or lyric traveled, and how it was adapted) is still being mapped. This section will trace the song's DNA across the archive.
Contributions welcome at OlMrRead@ccblues.com.