Best of Lead Belly

Leadbelly

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 2, 2000)
• Original Release Date: May 2, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Cleopatra
• ASIN: B00004SZGH
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #70,707 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #40 in

  Music > Indie Music > Blues > Traditional Blues

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pretty close., September 9, 2005

By	K. Ledbetter - See all my reviews

This single-disc compilation makes a pretty good introduction to the legendary folk/ blues musician, Lead Belly. The sound quality is good and comparable to the more recent collection Absolutely the Best, and this CD contains many of the same standards as that album, including "The Bourgeois Blues," "In New Orleans," "Goodnight Irene" and "Where Did You Sleep Last Night," as well as additional classics such as "Yellow Gal," "Blue Tail Fly" and "The Boll Weevil Song." The only thing stopping this collection from being indisputably more definitive than Absolutely the Best is the unfortunate absence of "Midnight Special," a song famously covered by Creedence Clearwater Revival in the late 1960s, and probably one of Huddie's four or five most popular songs. My suggestion? If you're willing to shell out a bit more, then get this album along with Lead Belly Sings for Children, also available on Amazon. The latter contains the aformentioned "Midnight Special," as well as a number of wonderful children's songs, spirituals and medleys.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the very best single-disc Leadbelly compilations, August 16, 2004

By	Docendo Discimus (Vita scholae) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This Cleopatra disc is a great place to start for those just getting acquainted with Huddie Ledbetter. It's not definitive, of course, but these fine transfers of Leadbelly's best-known songs will satisfy most casual fans, and while "Take This Hammer" (a part of the "When The Sun Goes Down"-series) is probably a little more accessible for the casual listener, you can't beat this disc as far as the song selection goes.

More serious fans will of course want "The Definitive Leadbelly" from the Catfish label, or the multi-volume "Leadbelly Legacy" series from Smithsonian/Folkways, but this is a terrific starting point for the curious. Huddie Ledbetter, who usually performed solo accompanied only by his own twelve-string guitar, was the first black musician to gain recognition amongst the white audiences of the 20s and 30s, and this is essential early American blues and folk music.

5.0 out of 5 stars leadbelly is the best, October 6, 2008

By	Michael A. Albert "loosenthebiblebelt" (nj) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

buy this. don't hesitate. it's necessary for you to own it and know it. otherwise you just don't know what you're missing. buy the robert johnson and hank williams complete recordings as well. then you're off to a good start. country blues, to me, is the direct predecessor to rock music, and it's some of the purest, most enjoyable music out there.