Smokestack Lightning
Producers
Smokestack Lightning Lyrics
Ah-oh, smokestack lightnin'
Shinin' just like gold
Why don't ya hear me cryin'?
A-whoo-hooo, oooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, tell me baby
What's the matter with you?
Why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, tell me baby
Why did ya stay last night?
A-why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, stop your train
Let a poor boy ride
Why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, fare ya well
Never see a you no more
A-why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Oooo, whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Shinin' just like gold
Why don't ya hear me cryin'?
A-whoo-hooo, oooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, tell me baby
What's the matter with you?
Why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, tell me baby
Why did ya stay last night?
A-why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, stop your train
Let a poor boy ride
Why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, fare ya well
Never see a you no more
A-why don't ya hear me cryin'?
Oooo, whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Whooo
Whoa-oh, who been here baby since
I-I been gone, a little, bitty boy?
Girl, be on
A-whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Songwriter: Howlin' Wolf
I-I been gone, a little, bitty boy?
Girl, be on
A-whoo-hooo, whoo-hooo
Songwriter: Howlin' Wolf
About
Genius Annotation
“Smokestack Lightening” by Chester Burnett (aka Howlin' Wolf) was released as a single in 1956.
This is a one-chord blues vamp in E minor. With its traditional blues lines and train references that serve as a double entendre for a woman who keeps disappearing now and again, just like the trains that go by the front porch.
Willie Dixon and Hubert Sumlin play on this recording and provide backup vocals.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 12.Mr. Highway Man
- 15.Oh Red!
- 16.My Last Affair
- 18.I Love My Baby
- 19.No Place to Go
- 20.Rocking Daddy
- 21.Baby How Long
- 23.I’ll Be Around
- 24.Forty-Four
- 29.Smokestack Lightning
- 34.My Life
- 36.Nature
- 37.Poor Boy
- 39.I Didn’t Know
- 43.Howlin’ Blues
- 44.I Better Go Now
- 45.I’ve Been Abused
- 46.Mr. Airplane Man
- 64.Do the Do
- 75.I’m the Wolf
- 80.Streamline Woman
Credits
Producers
Writer
Guitar
Bass
Harmonica
Drums
Piano
Release Date
March 1, 1956
Songs That Sample Smokestack Lightning
Songs That Interpolate Smokestack Lightning
Smokestack Lightning Covers
Smokestack Lightnin' (Version 2; Live at Fillmore West, San Francisco, February 8, 1970) by The Grateful Dead, Smokestack Lightnin' (Live at the Fillmore East, New York City, February 13, 1970) by The Grateful Dead, Smokestack Lightning by Ghost Hounds, Smokestack Lightnin' by Eamon Walker, Smokestack Lightning by Marty O'Reilly & the Old Soul Orchestra, Smokestack Lightnin' by Big Head Todd and the Monsters, Smokestack Lightning (Live at Academy of Music, New York, NY, March 25, 1972) by The Grateful Dead, Smokestack Lightning by Soundgarden, Smokestack Lightning (Live) by The Yardbirds, Smokestack Lightnin' by The Yardbirds, Smokestack Lightnin’ by John Lee Hooker, Smokestack Lightnin' by Ian Gillan & the Javelins & Smokestack Lightnin' by The Grateful Dead
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