We continue our way through the life of Leadbelly in Part 4. In this episode we see Leadbelly make a plea for a pardon with his music, and watch as he tries adjusting to life outside of prison. As hard as he tries starting life anew, he finds himself once again behind bars, this time in Angola, known as the Alcatraz of the South, one of the bloodiest prisons in US history.
We finally meet John Lomax and his son Allen who would become key figures in Leadbelly’s life as they traveled the South searching for American folk music to preserve for the Library of Congress. We clear up some Leadbelly myth with primary sources, learn a bit about the earliest attempts at musical preservation through recording, and even get to hear a 130-year-old Passamaquoddy war song recorded by anthropologist Jesse Walker Fewkes.
The adventure continues.
Sowing History: The Judean Date Palm’s 2,000 Year Old Comeback
From the Cache: Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer and the Coelacanth
From the Cache: History’s Happy Little Accidents
Unsinkable Sam
The Great Stink of 1858
The Second Life of Betty Robinson
The Lady Franklin Bay Expedition Part 2: Their Legacy Remains
The Lady Franklin Bay Expedition Part 1: No Way Home
Ken Allen: The Hairy Houdini
Édith Piaf: The Little Sparrow, Part 2
Édith Piaf: The Little Sparrow, Part 1
The Great 1908 New York to Paris Auto Race: The Finale
The Great 1908 New York to Paris Auto Race Part 3
The Great 1908 New York to Paris Auto Race Part 2
The Great 1908 New York to Paris Auto Race Part 1
When Harry Met Winnie: The True Story of Winnie the Pooh
Stingy Jack and the Origin of Jack-o’-Lanterns
From the Cache: A Strange Experiment on Mackinac Island
From the Cache: The Edmund Fitzgerald
Ornamental Garden Hermits: History’s Weirdest Job
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