Lead Belly

Leadbelly (born Huddie William Ledbetter; January 20, 1888 – December 6, 1949) was an American folk musician, notable for his clear and forceful singing, his virtuosity on the twelve string guitar, and the rich songbook of fol

Leadbelly (born Huddie William Ledbetter; January 20, 1888 – December 6, 1949) was an American folk musician, notable for his clear and forceful singing, his virtuosity on the twelve string guitar, and the rich songbook of folk standards he introduced.

Leadbelly was born to Wesley and Sally Ledbetter in a plantation near Mooringsport, Louisiana, but the family moved to Leigh, Texas when he was five. It was there he received his first instrument, an accordion from his uncle, and by his early-20s, after fathering at least two children, he left home to find his living as a guitarist (and occasionally, as a labourer). His boastful spirit and penchant for the occasional skirmish sometimes led him into trouble with the law, and in 1918 was thrown into a Texas jail for the second time, this time after killing a man in a fight. He was released seven years into his thirty year sentence after writing a song appealing to Governor Pat Neff for his freedom, but in 1930 was back in prison, this time in Louisiana for attempted homicide. It was there, three years later, that he was "discovered" by musicologists John and Alan Lomax, who were enchanted by his talent, passion and singularity as a performer, and recorded hundreds of his songs on portable recording equipment for the Library of Congress.