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- LEADBELLY -
Born Huddie William Leadbetter January 15, 1888, on the
Jeter Plantation near Mooringsport, Louisiana, Ledbetter became
interested in music when he was 5 years old. His uncle Terrell
gave him his first instrument, an accordion. Young Ledbetter was a
strong child, who could pick prodigious quantities of cotton, an
ability that would assume legendary status while he was
incarcerated as an adult. He took up the guitar in 1903, which
together with his singing and dancing soon had him playing parties
in Mooringsport. The next year Leadbelly, began to prowl St.
Paul’s Bottom, a
notorious red light district in Shreveport, Louisiana. In
order to make a living he played guitar and worked as a laborer when he needed to.
Around 1915 he met Blind Lemon
Jefferson. |
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He began to work and travel with the
legendary Bluesman. At this point in time Leadbelly's favorite guitar
became the Stella 12-string. In 1918, after killing a man in fight, he was sentenced to 30 years hard labor. Leadbelly spent the majority of the next 7
years in the Texas penal system, becoming a legend for his labor
ability and his singing. While in prison, he sang a ballad for
Governor Pat Neff in January 1924, begging for a pardon that
was granted a year later in one of Neff’s last official acts. Soon
after his release, Leadbelly first heard Blues records by
Bessie Smith, his friend Blind Lemon Jefferson, and Big
Bill Broonzy. He lived in
Shreveport and Houston from 1925 to 1930 but, unlike Blind
Lemon Jefferson, and the Memphis Jug Band, who all had hit records during this period, he
was not making commercial recordings. Leadbelly was arrested for
attempted homicide in 1930 and was sent this time to the notorious Angola
Prison, the state penitentiary of Louisiana. Folklorist
John Lomax and son Alan arrived at Angola in July 1933 to
record 'negro work songs' for the Library of Congress, Lomax
recorded 100s of songs with Leadbelly in just a few days. In
1934, Lomax petitioned Governor Allen with a recording that
Leadbelly had made and was pardoned that
year. Leadbelly moved to New York and was one of
the most popular Folk singers of the 1930's. He became friends and
worked with such talents as
Sonny Terry n' Brownie McGhee. Leadbelly made his first
commercial recordings for the ARC label in January 1935 and
recorded such songs as Goodnight Irene, Black Betty, Good Morning Blues, John Hardy, Gallows
Poles, Rock Island Line and Midnight
Special. He became a symbol of
the 'folk movement' during the 1930s to late 40s,
recording and entertaining until he fell ill while on a European
tour and died on December 6, 1949. Though many artists have
covered Leadbelly's songbook, it's British Blues legend
Long
John Baldry's tribute, 'Remembering Leadbelly'
that captures this great songwriters music. Leadbelly
was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame in
1986 and into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.
MP3-
Black Betty |
Good Morning Blues |
John Hardy | |
