Customer Reviews
A Great Summary Of Leadbelly's Legacy - By: Katcho, 19 Jun 2006 
Leadbelly was a truly amazing man. He was caring, he loved children , & his emotion was beautifully depictedin this album, which personally, I believe to be a literally, awesome album.
Over 70 songs, spanning his first recordingsin 1934, & his very last ones before he was forced to quit the guitar due to an arm injuryin 1949. His twelve string guitar merely emphasises this emotion, by giving his songs a much deeper sound. And his voice...Wow. What a powerful voice. This man could carry any tune home without trying, & It was a shame that he did'nt live any longer.
The first disc is basically all of his greatest hits. For example, the very fist track, "Grasshopperin my Pillow", displays one of his catchier riffs that he wrote, as well as his supreme voice. Another favouritew of mine is, "You cain't loose - a - mee Cholly" a great little song. Other highlights include: Pick A Bale O' Cotton, goodnight Irene & C.C Rider. But the best song on this disc has to be "Black Girl". This was covered by Nirvana on their Unplugged show, but changing to "My Girl, my Girl..." instead of "Black Girl, black girl..." which leadbelly did. This song is basically Leadbelly summarised to a further degreein just over 2 minutes. Although all of Leadbelly's songs sound very similar, this one to me, is special because, not only does it display the emotionin his voice & his guitar, but it also paints a picture of Leadbelly as a person, as well as a songwriter: emotional, sensitive & spiritual.
The format stays very similarin the other two discs, which are all his lesser known songs throughout career, my favourites include: Looky Looky Yonder, Roberta, Gray Goose, Death Letter Blues, My Friend Blind Lemon (dedicated to Blind Lemon Jefferson, who inspired him to play music), Alabama Bound & When I was A cowboy. All of these songs are brilliant, but every single other one is amazing to listen to as well. So buy this CD, the sound quality is brilliant, with little hissing & Leadbelly happens to be, quite possibly, the greatest blues singer that ever lived.
You may think that this is too many songs to buy for a first album, but it isn't. I myself purchased this compilation, & loved it, & i'm sure you will too.
Huddie's music still lives on - By: , 24 Aug 2003 
Sure there are loads of Leadbelly CDs, & naturally I have not heard them all, but as compilations go this is the best i have heard so far. The tracks chosen arein the main excellent & provide a perfect introduction to Leadbelly's Blues & the listner cannot fail to hear how Leadbelly influenced so many 'modern' rock & blues bands. This recording has been remastered to a very high standard (no hissing & scratching as on some Leadbelly albums I own) & each of the 3 cds are well over an hour long giving great value for money.
