Born Huddie William Ledbetter - January 20, 1889 - December 6, 1949, was an American folk and blues musician, noted for his clear and forceful singing and his virtuosity on the twelve string guitar.
Although his most commonly-played instrument was the 12-string guitar, he could also play the piano, mandolin, harmonica, violin, concertina, and accordion.
Leadbelly songs have been covered by The Weavers (Goodnight Irene), The Animals (The House of the Rising Sun), Creedence Clearwater Revival (Midnight Special), Nirvana (Where Did You Sleep Last Night), Lonnie Donegan, Johnny Cash, Gene Autry, The Beach Boys, Led Zeppelin, Mungo Jerry, Paul King, Mark Lanegan, Michelle Shocked, British Sea Power, Rod Stewart, The White Stripes, and The Fall, among many others.
The complete Library of Congress recordings by John and Alan Lomax from 1934 to 1943, were released in a six volume series by Rounder Records in the early-to-mid 1990s:
* Midnight Special (1991, Rounder Records)
* Gwine Dig a Hole to Put the Devil In (1991, Rounder Records)
* Let It Shine on Me (1991, Rounder Records)
* The Titanic (1994, Rounder Records)
* Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen (1994, Rounder Records)
* Go Down Old Hannah (1995, Rounder Records)
* Ain’t Gonna Drink No More
* Ain’t It a Shame
* Alabama Bound
* Alberta
* Back Water Blues
* Big Fat Woman
* Black Betty
* The Boll Weevil
* Borrow Love & Go
* The Bourgeois Blues
* Bring Me Little Water Silvy
* C.C. Rider
* Cotton Fields
* Death Letter Blues (Parts 1&2)
* Dekalb Woman 2
* Easy Rider
* Ella Speed
* Fannin Street
* Fiddlers Dram
* Frankie and Albert (Trad.)
* The Gallows Pole
* Get on Board
* Good Morning Blues
* Green Corn
* Grey Goose
* Goodnight Irene
* Gwine Dig a Hole to Put the Devil In
* Heaeh Mountain Stomp
* The Hindenburg Disaster (Parts 1&2)
* If it Wasn’t for Dicky
* I’m On My Last Go Round
* In New Orleans (House of the Rising Sun)
* Jesn Harlow
* John Hardy
* Julie Ann Johnson
* Keep Your Hands Off Her
* Leaving Blues
* Line Em
* Looky Looky Yonder
* Mother’s Blues
* The Midnight Special
* Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen
* New York City
* Noted Rider
* On a Christmas Day
* Outshine the Sun
* Packing Trunk Blues
* Pick a Bale of Cotton
* Poor Howard
* Pretty Flowers in My Backyard
* Roberta
* Rock Island Line
* Sail On, Little Girl, Sail On
* Sweet Mary Blues
* Take This Hammer
* Tell me Baby
* TB Woman Blues
* They Hung Him on a Cross (Easter)
* Western Plain
* Where Did You Sleep Last Night (Black Girl)
* When the Boys Were Out on the Western Plains
* Whoa Back Buck
* Yellow Womans Doorbells
* You Can’t Lose Me Charlie (You Can’t Lose-A Me Cholly)
