Audio CD review:
Leadbelly - Shout On: Leadbelly Legacy, Vol. 3

Leadbelly - Shout On: Leadbelly Legacy, Vol. 3

Band: Leadbelly Title: Shout On: Leadbelly Legacy, Vol. 3 Rating: Release Date: 17 March, 1998 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Shout On 2: Little Children's Blues 3: Governer Pat Neff 4: Ain't Going Down To The Well No More 5: Go Down Old Hannah 6: Come And Sit Down Behind Me 7: How Long, How Long 8: Old Man 9: John Henry 10: Jean Harlow 11: Birmingham Jail 12: Don't Sleep Too Long 13: It Was Early One Morning 14: Uncle Sam Says 15: If You Want To Do Your Part 16: National Defense Blues 17: Whoa Back Buck 18: Ham And Eggs 19: Midnight Special 20: Grey Goose 21: Yellow Gal 22: Green Corn 23: The Parting Song 24: Rooster Crows At Midnight 25: Skip To My Lou 26: Medley: More Yet/Little Boy How Old Are You/Green Grass Growing All Around 27: Medley: What Are Little Boys Made Of/Polly Wee 28: Ha Ha This A-Way 29: You Can't Lose Me, Cholly 30: It Was Soon One Morning 31: Take This Hammer 32: Pick A Bale Of Cotton

Customer Reviews The voice that shattered walls... Rock and folk continued to appropriate his thundering vocal style and jackhammer guitar style well after his 1949 death. Lead Belly's influence spread over twentieth century music like thick spackle. In 1950 the Weavers, featuring a very young Pete Seeger, hit musical manna with "Goodnight Irene," Lead Belly's signature song. Finally, the word spread. This last disc in a three disc retrospective captures some of Lead Belly's best recordings from the last obscure decade of his life. Had he lived just one more year he would have witnessed an explosive interest in his music. As he struggled for recognition, the intense quality his performances exuded were captured on disc by Moses Asch and others. "Shout On" preserves this passion and it doesn't let up through thirty two songs. Mandibles will drop at the range and versatility. From a capella to duos, trios, and upwards, Huddy Ledbetter shines. Similar to volumes 1 and 2, this volume presents a wide range of material: folk songs, work songs, war songs, children's songs, reworkings of classics, and originals. The title track, which opens the disc, starts the show with a wide open blast complete with "Fanning Street" style guitar churning. "Governor Pat Neff" was featured as the song that convinced a pardon for murder in the 1976 docudrama of Lead Belly's early years: "If I had you Governor Neff like you had me I'd wake up in the morning and set you free. " A string of patriotic world war II songs appears half way through the disc: "Uncle Sam Says" and "If You Want To Do Your Part" beckon the populace to war. The latter in particular pours on the pride and shame syrup thick. "Ham and Eggs" through "Green Corn" feature Woody Guthrie and Cisco Houston as the backing band for some Lead Belly classics, including a mandolin trilling "Midnight Special" and a rousing "Yellow Gal. " Guthrie in particular really wails through these numbers. The disc ends almost where the series began with "Pick A Bale of Cotton. " Anyone interested in Lead Belly should start with this excellent series. The recording quality stays consistent throughout, unlike some of the recordings from the 1920s and 1930s. Not only that, the CD booklets tell the entire story of Lead Belly. This last one contains an entire list of songs in the Asch catalog (but those looking for specific songs need to trace the included Smithsonian Folkways number to an actual recording). Add to that photos and extensive song notes and the entire Lead Belly legend comes alive. When historians look back on twentieth century music they will likely single out Lead Belly as a singular and influential performer and songwriter. One listen to this disc makes that opinion seem more like prophecy. 3rd of 3 in Smithsonian's Lead Belly Legacy series All three CDs are taken from Moses Asch's original studio masters (as opposed to most other available compilations on reprint labels, which are made from secondary sources); the other two are Vol. (70') This is the third of three volumes in the Smithsonian's Lead Belly Legacy series, probably the best set for just listening to Lead Belly play and sing. 1 "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" SF40044 (67'), and Vol. 2 "Bourgeois Blues" SF40045 (72'). As usual, the Smithsonian provides extensive and authoritative notes; the notes for this Vol. 3 also include a complete song listing of Lead Belly song titles on their various CDs, but unfortunately it doesn't distinguish between the few duplications issued, versus different recordings of the same song. Leadbelly Shout On sure shouts ON The sound quality is excellent. This is an excellent release of some material that has been available before and some that has not. Recorded in thre 1940's for Moe Asch for folkways thew sound is of the highest level possible. The songs are great. It contains some very rare war songs not found in any other collection. If you are a leadbelly fan I highly recomen it. If you are new to Leadbelly this is a good place to start. . You can see a complete list of all Leadbelly discography, or go back to the Leadbelly tabs