![]() ![]() to record for Alan Lomax and the Library of Congress. Thereafter, he worked as John Lomax’s chauffeur and relocated to the Northeastern United States, often traveling to Washington D.C. Incarcerated once again for assault, Ledbetter sufficiently wooed the Lomax’s that they convinced Louisiana Governor O.K. It was in this same spirit that he was brought to the Lomax’s attention in 1933. He famously used his musical talent to garner the attention of Texas Governor Pat Neff, who pardoned and released Ledbetter from prison in 1925. ![]() He even went so far as to call himself “The King of the Twelve-String Guitar”, a talent that he used to exploit the Texas prison system he entered in 1917 on a thirty year sentence for assault. “I wants to be the best – the king” he would say. It was from this determination that he received the nickname “Lead Belly”, as he could outwork, outfight, and out-sing anyone who dared challenge him. ![]() Leadbelly in the foreground.īorn in the late 1880’s to the oppressive cotton fields of Louisiana, Ledbetter feared only one thing: failure. Angola, Louisiana prison compound, July 1933. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |