Lead Belly recorded two versions of the song in February 1944 and in October 1948 called "In New Orleans" and "The House of the Rising Sun" respectively, and the latter was recorded in the sessions that later became the album Lead Belly's Last Sessions (1994, Smithsonian Folkways). Alan Price of The Animals has claimed that the song was originally a sixteenth-century English folk song about a Soho brothel, and that English emigrants took the song to America where it was adapted to its later New Orleans setting. The oldest known existing recording is by Appal… read more
Lead Belly recorded two versions of the song in February 1944 and in October 1948 called "In New Orleans" and "The House of the Rising… read more
Lead Belly recorded two versions of the song in February 1944 and in October 1948 called "In New Orleans" and "The House of the Rising Sun" respectively, and the latt… read more
Huddie Ledbetter (Artist: Leadbelly or Lead Belly, January 20, 1888 - December 6, 1949) was an iconic American folk and blues musician, and multi-instrumentalist, notable for his strong vocals, his virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the songbook of folk standards he introduced. Although Lead Belly most commonly played the twelve-string, he could also play the piano, mandolin, harmonica, violin, and accordion. In some of his recordings, such as in one of his versions of the folk ballad "John Hardy", he performs on the accordion instead of the guitar. In other recor… read more
Huddie Ledbetter (Artist: Leadbelly or Lead Belly, January 20, 1888 - December 6, 1949) was an iconic American folk and blues musician, and multi-instrumentalist, notable for his strong voc… read more
Huddie Ledbetter (Artist: Leadbelly or Lead Belly, January 20, 1888 - December 6, 1949) was an iconic American folk and blues musician, and multi-instrumentalist, notable for his strong vocals, his virtuosity on the twelve-string guita… read more