Although Lead Belly usually played the twelve-string guitar, he could also play the piano, mandolin, harmonica, violin, andCajun accordion ("windjammer").[4] In some of his recordings, such as in one of his versions of the folk ballad "John Hardy", he performs on the accordion. In other recordings he sings while clapping his hands or stomping his foot.
The topics of Lead Belly's music covered a wide range, including gospel; blues about women, liquor, prison life, andracism; and folk songs about cowboys, prison, work, sailors, cattle herding, and dancing. He also wrote songs about people in the news, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Adolf Hitler, Jean Harlow, the Scottsboro Boys, and Howard Hughes.
Lead Belly was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 in the "Early Influence" category. In 2008, he was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.
In some of the recordings where Lead Belly accompanied himself, he would make an unusual type of grunt between his verses, best described as "Haah!" in many of his songs such as "Looky Looky Yonder," "Take this Hammer," "Linin' Track" and "Julie Ann Johnson" feature this unusual vocalization. In the song, "Take this Hammer," Lead Belly explained, "Every time the men say 'haah,' the hammer falls. The hammer rings, and we swing, and we sing."
The "haah" sound can be heard in the work chants sung by Southern railroad section workers, "gandy dancers," where it was used to coordinate the crews as they laid and maintained the tracks before modern machinery was available.
@Shaka—thanks Jim. Though neither southern blues nor folk have never made to the top of my playlist, I must admit I’ve really liked most of your jams, including this one, and I appreciate the background info you include so often with your jams—that makes the whole experience even more interesting :). Thanks.
@MadameZia@homosporocarpus It brings an extra oomh of happy in the home here when you enjoy...most of these blues writings are copy and pasted from different sources...it's like deja vu all over again doing research papers for school
8 Comments (since 6 Feb 2015)
Shaka
Although Lead Belly usually played the twelve-string guitar, he could also play the piano, mandolin, harmonica, violin, andCajun accordion ("windjammer").[4] In some of his recordings, such as in one of his versions of the folk ballad "John Hardy", he performs on the accordion. In other recordings he sings while clapping his hands or stomping his foot.
Shaka
The topics of Lead Belly's music covered a wide range, including gospel; blues about women, liquor, prison life, andracism; and folk songs about cowboys, prison, work, sailors, cattle herding, and dancing. He also wrote songs about people in the news, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Adolf Hitler, Jean Harlow, the Scottsboro Boys, and Howard Hughes.
Shaka
Lead Belly was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 in the "Early Influence" category. In 2008, he was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.
Shaka
In some of the recordings where Lead Belly accompanied himself, he would make an unusual type of grunt between his verses, best described as "Haah!" in many of his songs such as "Looky Looky Yonder," "Take this Hammer," "Linin' Track" and "Julie Ann Johnson" feature this unusual vocalization. In the song, "Take this Hammer," Lead Belly explained, "Every time the men say 'haah,' the hammer falls. The hammer rings, and we swing, and we sing."
Shaka
The "haah" sound can be heard in the work chants sung by Southern railroad section workers, "gandy dancers," where it was used to coordinate the crews as they laid and maintained the tracks before modern machinery was available.
homosporocarpus
@Shaka—thanks Jim. Though neither southern blues nor folk have never made to the top of my playlist, I must admit I’ve really liked most of your jams, including this one, and I appreciate the background info you include so often with your jams—that makes the whole experience even more interesting :). Thanks.
MadameZia
I absolutely love what you've written here x
Shaka
@MadameZia @homosporocarpus It brings an extra oomh of happy in the home here when you enjoy...most of these blues writings are copy and pasted from different sources...it's like deja vu all over again doing research papers for school