If for nothing else, Huddie Ledbetter should be recognized for bringing the 12-string guitar to prominence. He was so skilled with the instrument that he was able to play his way out of prison twice. Not bad for a Southern black who had been imprisoned first for killing a black man and then for stabbing a white man. Signature songs include "Goodnight Irene," "Rock Island Line," and "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" -- a powerful ballad that will stop you in your tracks. A personal favorite of mine is his recording of the gospel tune "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen."
It has been suggested in some circles, apocryphal or not, that Leadbelly may have been involved in Kurt Cobain's suicide. As the story goes, after Nirvana recorded "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" on MTV Unplugged, Leadbelly's family offered to sell Leadbelly's guitar to Cobain. With his contract up for renewal, Cobain supposedly asked his record label to buy him the guitar as a signing bonus. When they refused, Cobain realized that the corporate suits in charge of the musical industry, like much of the public, didn't give a shit about the artistry of authentic, gutteral expression, and that this realization is what drove him to suicide. If the story is true, its a damn shame that they didn't realize the beauty of Leadbelly's Ovation.
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