Huddie William Ledbetter
Huddie William Ledbetter ( HYOO-dee; January 1888 or 1889 – December 6, 1949), better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the folk standards he introduced, including his renditions of "In the Pines" (also known as "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" and “Black Girl”), "Pick a Bale of Cotton", "Goodnight, Irene", "Black Betty", "Midnight Special", "Cotton Fields", and "Boll Weevil".
Ledbetter usually played a twelve-string guitar, but he also played the piano, mandolin, harmonica, violin, and windjammer (accordion). In some recordings he also used clapping or stomping to accompany his singing.
Ledbetter's songs covered a wide range of genres, including gospel music, blues, and folk music, as well as a number of topics, including women, liquor, prison life, racism, cowboys, work, sailors, cattle herding, and dancing. He also wrote songs about people in the news, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Adolf Hitler, Jean Harlow, Jack Johnson, the Scottsboro Boys and Howard Hughes. Ledbetter was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 and the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2008.
Though many releases credit him as "Leadbelly", he wrote his stage name as "Lead Belly". This is the spelling on his tombstone and is used by the Lead Belly Foundation. He did not care for the "Lead Belly" stage name and always introduced himself by his given name, Huddie Ledbetter.
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