Peter Wolf

Peter Blankfield (born March 7, 1946),[1] better known by his stage name Peter Wolf, is an American musician best known as the lead vocalist of the J. Geils Band from 1967 to 1983[2] and as a successful solo artist.

Peter Wolf
Background information
Birth namePeter Blankfield
Also known asWoofa Goofa
Born (1946-03-07) March 7, 1946
The Bronx, New York, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • performer
  • songwriter
  • painter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • piano
  • guitar
  • harmonica
  • percussion
Years active1964 - present
Labels
Associated acts
Websitewww.peterwolf.com

Early life and education

Peter Wolf was born in The Bronx.[1]

He attended the High School of Music & Art, located in west Harlem near the Apollo Theater. He often attended the Apollo, seeing many of the famous soul, rhythm & blues, and gospel artists who influenced him. He moved to Boston, Massachusetts, to attend the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts[3] on scholarship, where he studied painting. His first roommate was film director David Lynch.

Career

In 1964, Wolf and fellow art students Paul Shapiro(guitar), Doug Slade(guitar), Joe Clark(bass), and Stephen Jo Bladd(drums) formed a group called The Hallucinations. They performed at nightclubs in the Combat Zone area of Boston and developed a large following as one of the first bands to play at the Boston Tea Party. During this period, they appeared on bills with The Velvet Underground, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Van Morrison (who became close with Wolf while residing in nearby Cambridge, Massachusetts), John Lee Hooker, and Sun Ra.[4]

During his time performing with the Hallucinations, Wolf was asked to help establish Boston's radio station WBCN and became their first all-night deejay creating the moniker 'Woofa Goofa' as his on-air personality.[3] His show became a popular late night staple where he interviewed many of the well-known rock, blues, and jazz artists that were touring through Boston in the late 1960s.

In 1967 Wolf and Stephen Jo Bladd were asked to join the J. Geils Band which included members Magic Dick (harmonica), Danny Klein (bass) and Jay Geils (guitar). With the addition of Seth Justman (keyboards) the final line-up of the group was complete. Wolf and keyboardist Seth Justman were responsible for most of the band's songwriting. During the early days of MTV, the band enjoyed heavy airplay of their videos "Centerfold" and "Love Stinks". They toured stadiums with the Rolling Stones and others. Following the success of Freeze Frame, the other band members wanted to take the band in a new direction musically, but Wolf disagreed and they parted ways in 1983. The J.Geils Band released one record without Wolf, dissolving shortly thereafter. In 1999 the band reunited for a series of shows and has been nominated five times for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Solo work
Peter Wolf jumping (1982)

Wolf's first solo record Lights Out (1984) was produced with Michael Jonzun, of the Jonzun Crew, and featured Adrian Belew, G.E. Smith, Elliot Randall, Yogi Horton, Mick Jagger, Elliot Easton, and Maurice Starr. The single "Lights Out" written with Don Covey became a hit the same year, peaking at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Wolf appeared on the Artists United Against Apartheid's song, "Sun City" in 1987.

In 1987, Wolf released his second solo album Come as You Are, with the title track notching Wolf another top-15 hit on the pop chart and a number one hit on the Mainstream Rock Chart. A later single titled "Can't Get Started" also had wide radio play.

His album Long Line (1996) and Fool's Parade (1998) started his collaboration with singer/songwriter Kenny White producing. Sleepless (2002) featured guest appearances from Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and was highly praised by Rolling Stone. as one of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Wolf has collaborated with Angelo Petraglia and long-time writing partner Will Jennings.

Wolf's 2010 album Midnight Souvenirs won Album of the Year at the Boston Music Awards.[5][6] On the album, Wolf performed duets with Shelby Lynne, Neko Case, and Merle Haggard.

Wolf inducted Jackie Wilson and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

His eighth solo album, A Cure for Loneliness, was released in April 2016.[7]

Personal life

Wolf married actress Faye Dunaway in 1974.[8] and divorced in 1979.[9]

Discography

Studio albums
List of albums, with selected details and chart positions
Title Album details Peak chart positions Sales
US
[10]		 US
Rock
[11]		 US
Folk
[12]		 US
Indie
[13]		 SWE
[14]
Lights Out 24 — — — 17
Come as You Are
  • Released: March 20, 1987
  • Label: EMI America
 53 — — — 26
Up to No Good
  • Released: February 19, 1990
  • Label: MCA
 111 — — — 46
Long Line
  • Released: May 14, 1996
  • Label: Reprise
 — — — — —
Fool's Parade
  • Released: September 29, 1998
  • Label: Mercury
 — — — — —
Sleepless
  • Released: September 10, 2002
  • Label: Artemis
 — — — 39 —
Midnight Souvenirs
  • Released: April 6, 2010
  • Label: Verve
 45 12 — — —
A Cure for Loneliness
  • Released: April 8, 2016
  • Label: Concord
 144 18 5 — —
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Singles
Year Song US Hot 100 US MSR US Dance AUS CAN Album
1984 "Lights Out" 12 6 11 46 15 Lights Out
1984 "I Need You Tonight" 36 22 - 85
1984 "Crazy" - 26 -
1985 "Oo-Ee-Diddley-Bop!" 61 -
1987 "Come as You Are" 15 1 49 72 29 Come as You Are
1987 "Can't Get Started" 75 16 -
1990 "99 Worlds" 77 9 - 56 Up to No Good
1996 "Long Line" - - - Long Line
1998 "Turnin' Pages" - - - Fool's Parade

References
  1. "Peter W. Blankfield - Genealogy". Geni.com. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
  2. Skelly, Richard; Jurek, Thom. "Biography: Peter Wolf". AMG. Retrieved May 20, 2010.
  3. Coffey, Carl (March 7, 2018). "It's the Woofa Goofa Peter Wolf's birthday". US103.com. Townsquare Media, Inc. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
  4. "The Hallucinations". The Music Museum of New England. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
  5. Gottlieb, Jed (December 7, 2010), "Peter Wolf, Amanda Palmer lead BMA winners", Boston Herald
  6. Perry, Jonathan (December 6, 2010), "Uke in hand, Palmer tops Music Awards", Boston Globe
  7. Horowitz, Hal (April 7, 2016), "Peter Wolf: A Cure for Loneliness", American Songwriter
  8. Lester, Peter (5 October 1981). "Dunaway Does Crawford". People. New York City. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  9. Giles, Jeff (August 7, 2015). "45 Years Ago: J. Geils Band Singer Peter Wolf Marries Aactress Faye Dunaway". ultimateclassicrock.com. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
  10. "Peter Wolf - Chart history - Billboard 200". Billboard.
  11. "Peter Wolf - Chart history - Rock Albums". Billboard.
  12. "Peter Wolf - Chart history - Folk Albums". Billboard.
  13. "Peter Wolf - Chart history - Independent Albums". Billboard.
  14. "Swedish Charts > Peter Wolf". swedishcharts.com Hung Medien.
  15. "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
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