Shake for Me

Howlin Wolf recorded Shake for Me in Chicago in 1961 with a Chess studio band featuring Hubert Sumlin on guitar, Johnny Jones on piano, Willie Dixon on bass, and Sam Lay on drums. Willie Dixon wrote the song and built it around Wolfs commanding vocal and a taut Chicago blues groove. Released by Chess in 1961, Shake for Me became one of Howlin Wolfs key early-1960s singles and later appeared on his 1962 album Howlin Wolf. The record paired his rough vocal presence with Dixons sharp songwriting during one of Wolfs strongest Chess periods. Shake for Me became a durable Howlin Wolf standard and entered the blues-rock repertoire through later live and studio versions by artists including the Rolling Stones and Stevie Ray Vaughan. It remains closely associated with the Willie Dixon and Howlin Wolf partnership at Chess.