Leadbelly


I served my mormon mission in Mississippi and ever since then I've been in love with blues and folk music. One of my favorite areas was in the Delta where a lot of incredible musicians got their start.

One of my favorite folk artists is Leadbelly. His story is quite interesting. If you ever care to look into his life a little more you'll find all sorts of neat things about one of folk music's greatest legends. Huddie William Ledbetter who later became known as Leadbelly was discovered at the Angola Prison Farm in Louisiana by John Lomax and his 18 year old son Alan Lomax. What started as a simple documentation of negro prison songs by Lomax ended up being a much larger movement to get his music in the limelight. The rest is history. Here are a few rare videos that give you a better idea of who Leadbelly is. You'll hear me talk about Alan Lomax and lifelong journey to document folk music around the world. If you look for it you can see a lot of popular culture references to Leadbelly. I'll post more on that too.

The first video was a recreation that was produced by Time Magazine back in 1935. Awesome.

The Archers Apple & Kickstarter

I met Seth Hanks through my friends Brooklyn, Anna, and Kate a couple years ago and have been a fan of his bands music for some time now. I was lucky to see them play live a couple months ago when I was passing through Utah and let me tell you, they put on a fun show. I really dig their sound. Feel free to help yet another friend's band on kickstarter. I really like what they are doing. Click here for their FB page.

Townes Van Zandt & Uncle Seymour

This is just sorta neat.

Island by Akron/Family

This song is really smooth. Simple and calming. Enjoy. Akron/Family formed in Williamsburg, Brooklyn and have put some pretty decent albums out. Their upcoming album has been getting some buzz. It's called S/T II:The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT. If you could figure out what that means I'll give you a buck. I like it regardless of my lack of understanding.

Benjamin Francis Leftwich

Benjamin Francis Leftwich - Rebellion ( Arcade Fire Cover) by Pop Culture Monster
Benjamin Francis Leftwich - When You Were Young by Authority Communications
This guy knows how to make music. He is from York, England. Expect to hear more of him in the near future. His new EP Pictures just came out. Other tracks to look for are The Boat, Atlas Hands, and See you. Here is a link to some more info. Enjoy.

The Archer's Apple

I had the chance to meet Seth (who sings and plays guitar for The Archer's Apple) through my friend Brooklyn and Kate. I thoroughly enjoy this video of them playing their music. It is raw and simple and everything I love in a good acoustic set. Enjoy the video and tell your friends about them, they are swell people.