Customer Reviews

A Tribute to Leadbelly

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Obviously, when you die you have to stop making records (unless you're Jimi Hendrix, but that's another story). And the only way to keep your songs alive is to make sure that your pals keep singing them. This concert, recorded around 1977, brings together some of Leadbelly's friends and acquaintances, who then pay tribute to the man by basically phoning in their performances.

We get decent, but not stellar performances from Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, who by this time were pretty much sick of each other and on the verge of breaking up. Sonny introduces "Poor Howard" by telling a story that even Leadbelly once said was wrong; Pete Seeger, an old friend, appears to be embellishing the stories he tells, too. His performances of "In the Pines" and "Bourgeois Blues" are pretty good, though.

The only really great performances here belong to Arlo Guthrie. Always a showman, and clearly standing in for his late father (since he's way too young to have any kind of recollection of Leadbelly himself), he works the audience with "The Grey Goose" and keeps things bouncing along with "On a Monday." He then stays at the piano for the obligatory group finale with all the performers present.

If you collect any of these artists, then by all means buy this. But otherwise, get a real Leadbelly album.

LEADBELLY: A TRIBUTE is a transcription of a concert that took place at the Hunter College Assembly Hall (New York City), on March 15, 1976. Besides vintage recorded narration and music by Huddie Ledbetter himself, appearing on stage were Arlo Guthrie, the Lunenberg Travelers, Pete Seeger, Sonny Terry, Brownie McGhee and Alan Lomax. The program consists of songs written and/or popularized by Leadbelly.

Sound quality of this over 30 year-old folk concert is quite good and the performances are competent.