West Point, Mississippi was the hometown of Chester Arthur “Howlin’ Wolf” Burnett. He was raised on a cotton plantation and exposed to local folk music.

He began singing professionally at an early age and played in small bars all throughout Mississippi in the 1920s and 1930s. Blind Lemon Jefferson, Sonny Boy Williamson, and Charley Patton were three musicians who had an impact on him.

He moved to Arkansas in the 1940s, a state known for its thriving blues scene, and established his own group there with James Cotton and Little Jr.

Parker, who went on to become well-known blues musicians in their own right. Howlin’ Wolf accompanied himself on guitar and harmonica, but his primary instrument was his gruff, provocative voice, which gave the strength and authenticity of his music.

What was Howlin Wolf’s cause of death?

Wolf continued to record and perform even though he had kidney disease and had already experienced three heart attacks.

He had dialysis treatments in the studio between takes of the London Howlin’ Wolf Sessions CD, which was recorded at London’s Olympic Studios.

In November 1975, he gave his last live performance at the Chicago Amphitheater. On the same bill as B.B. King, Albert King, O. V. Wright, and Luther Allison, Wolf put on his usual performance, even making his way across the stage while singing “Crawling King Snake.”

The audience applauded him for five minutes while standing. He was revived by a group of paramedics after leaving the stage.

He had a cancer discovered in his brain three days prior to passing away. On January 10, 1976, at the age of 65, the tumor, heart failure, and kidney illness all contributed to his demise.