Lead Belly

I’ve been reading about the folk/blues musician Lead Belly lately. Born Huddie Ledbetter around 1885 in Louisiana, he spent much of the first half of his life as a field worker and ramblin’ man in the rural south. He had a hot temper, and was convicted of murder on separate occasions. He spent a lot of time in prisons, where he entertained guards with his music and wrote songs for the men in charge in the hope that he would be set free. His plan worked – the governors of both Texas and Louisiana granted him pardons for his crimes. Lead Belly eventually moved to New York, where he performed folk songs tirelessly until his death in 1949.

“Goodnight Irene”

Undoubtedly two of the most famous songs that Lead Belly recorded were “The House of the Rising Sun” and “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”. They have since been recorded countless times by different artists, and these are two of my favorite versions.

The Ventures, “The House of the Rising Sun”

You can’t beat a surf rock cover of a traditional folk song. The Animals version is incredible too, with that wonderful early-’60s organ. If you haven’t heard that it in a while, give it a listen.

Nirvana, “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”

It is widely believed that this traditional song originated in the Appalachian mountains in the 1870s. The song was popularized by several folk musicians in the 1940s and 1950s, sometimes recorded under the title “In the Pines”. Nirvana introduced it to a new generation on MTV Unplugged over a hundred years after it is thought to have been written. I could listen to this all day long.

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