I gave him tickets for a Stones concert and, as I’d heard in the media that he didn’t have any money, I arranged a limo to collect him and his wife Lillie. He came backstage then when he went into the auditorium, they all stood and applauded him.
His wife said it was one of the most wonderful moments of his life and the next night he invited the whole band to his house. Can you believe that nobody wanted to go except me?
Howlin’ Wolf was like a giant bear. Everyone thought he was frightening and to look at him he was, but he was a real sweetheart when you got to know him
I asked him to put one of his records on and he said, ‘I haven’t got any because I end up giving them away to people when they come round.’
Stephen took the photo. He travelled with me and the Stones during school holidays, throughout Europe and also America whenever possible so he was used to meeting celebrities, but he was always in awe of them and he always asked for their autographs.
Howlin’ Wolf was like a giant bear. Everyone thought he was frightening and to look at him he was, but he was a real sweetheart when you got to know him.
I first met him in May 1965 when The Rolling Stones did the Shindig! show, which was a bit like Top Of The Pops, and it was the first airing in America of Satisfaction.
We insisted that if they didn’t put Howlin’ Wolf on the show, we wouldn’t do it either, and when he performed he caused a sensation.
Five years later myself, Charlie Watts and Eric Clapton played on The London Howlin’ Wolf Sessions album and being in the studio with him was fantastic. That was a bit special to say the least – he was one of my idols.
Charlie and myself were the married ones in the Stones. I was already married with an eight-month-old son when I joined the band in 1962 and Charlie got married a couple of years later then had a daughter.
We were the steady, reliable rhythm section. In those early days, the family only came along on rare occasions because there wasn’t the money to pay for them, plus the schedule was so packed.
I’m not sure bands today would understand what it was like back then. In 1963 alone, we played more than 340 shows, and 320 the year after, and that was before we did Europe, Scandinavia and Australia.
You’d do so much on any given day: you’d meet up in the morning to do interviews and have photos taken, then you’d grab a quick lunch, you’d cut three tracks in the recording studio, jump in the van and you were off to Southend or Sheffield to do two shows a night.
After that you’d drive to Landudno or somewhere and that was before there were motorways so you could be in a van all night.
