Lead Belly's "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" Thoughts...
Friday, October 9, 2009 at 5:46 PM Lead Belly’s “Where Did You Sleep Last Night?” illustrates exactly what John and Alan Lomax used to reach such high success in collecting American folk music, a sense of authenticity; however, it was an authenticity that had originated long before. That is to say, Lead Belly’s version is what we now call popular music as it encompasses so much more than just sorrow being expressed. Stories, especially that of love and tragedy, have been told for ages, but this 20th century version of “In the Pines” became commercialized ironically as something authentic and new. The diasporic movement of rural African-Americans leaving their Southern homes to the urban North, brought about folk artists like Lead belly, with a rawness that people were unexposed at that time. Because Lomax was able to exaggerate and overrate what Lead Belly represented, a displaced criminal, into a primitive convict, this song was able to capture more that just an instinctive sad response to the lonely widow, it represented African-American roots that people were vying for.
This is all more visible with the form and expression of the song. The form is the typical A/B transition throughout with an interjection of three A stanzas, where the listener is able to make more sense out of the song, as the widow tells about her deceased husband. Although we see a new perspective to the narrative, the singer’s voice stays the same, a traditional characteristic of a folk song. The melody is fairly constant, with a catchy tune that makes the song almost unforgettable. The song is also formulated in a call and response type of fashion, dating back to original African tribal songs. Because the song has a relatively simple formulation, it is clear that it was able to popularize with the American audience of Leady Belly’s time.
I had so many thoughts about this song and article relating to it, so my thoughts might be unclear. I tried to put forth my main message but please feel free to ask questions of clarification and/or objections/opinions about my response.
Reader Comments (6)
Roxanna – great observations; I especially like your idea that the lyrics of the song, which form a sort of dialogue, can be related to traditional African call-and-response music. I’d like to caution you against seeing Lead Belly’s movement from the south to the north as a diaspora, because the word “diaspora” connotes largescale movements of an oppressed or traumatized people. Not all movement is diaspora, in other words. Lead Belly was traveling with the Lomaxes in order to perform, not necessarily to flee the south, and it seems unclear to me whether he moved north in order to try to work for the Lomaxes, or because the north specifically held some kind of promise for him. But, it’s a valid point that many African-Americans DID diasporically move from the south the north, and that cultural mixing occurred as a result, and that Lead Belly’s music was brought up to the north from the south. You’re right about Lomax’s exaggerations of Lead Belly’s “primitive” characteristics, and it’s telling that he sang a murder ballad when he was, indeed, a murderer. Do you think this make the song more authentic, or less authentic? If you choose to write an essay on this topic, I’d encourage you to further develop your thoughts on authenticity, and to take a closer look at specific moments in the song, the general tone, and especially the differences between this song and Bill Monroe’s version. Good work, and I’d like to see some of these other thoughts you have!
P.S. - This song’s form is not quite what it seems; it’s too repetitive to be considered ABA, so it’s actually more like AA’.
I like the point of the authenticity originating long before. That is why i am a little confused of why Lead belley's version is considered authentic. So although he started a new style of expression, the lyrics were very much already existent which i think takes a bit away from the authenticity.
The-An,
Lead Belly is considered a more "authentic" musician by virtue of the fact that the song had been around for awhile by the time he recorded it; in other words, he represented an an African-American who sang an African-American song that was "unspoiled" by white music influences. The song hadn't evolved because he was from an isolated community; at least, that's what the Lomaxes wanted their audiences to think. Of course, this wasn't entirely true; Lead Belly's music shows some hints of inevitable outside influences, and he knew a lot of songs, some of them definitely more modern, that he wasn't allowed to play. So the idea of Lead Belly's authenticity is really pretty complicated; some aspects of the song seem to reinforce his authenticity, and others seem to weaken it.
Hi everybody,
I was wondering whether anyone else is of the opinion that the "authenticity" listeners ascribe to Lead Belly is a way of cheapening his music. Characterizing Lead Belly as a certain type of musician discredits his own vital contributions to music, as one begins to view his creative output as a product of a larger, idyllic, musical tradition.
In your posts, many of you considered the effect Lead Belly’s spoken interjections had on the authenticity or lack thereof in his version of “Where Did You Sleep Last Night?” Christopher Yoshonis made an interesting point when he noted the Jazz influence in Lead Belly’s interjections, implying that they detracted authenticity. Check out Christopher’s post here: (http://benleedscarson.com/by-banks-in-pines/2009/10/10/lead-bellys-in-the-pines.html). Hannah Sherman, on the other hand, felt that these interjections increased authenticity as they reflected what Lead Belly “felt and experienced.” Take a look at Hannah’s post here: (http://benleedscarson.com/by-banks-in-pines/2009/10/9/where-did-you-sleep-last-night-by-leadbelly.html). Using these examples as a springboard, what effect do you think Lead Belly’s spoken interjections have on the song’s authenticity and on the song in general? Why do you think Lead Belly chose to speak the specific lines that he did, as opposed to any other lines? And looking at the topic in broader terms, what effect do you think spoken interjections have on songs today? Feel free to post youtube links to examples of present-day songs featuring spoken interjections and to discuss these examples with your classmates!
I agree wit the above comment that Leadbelly's authenticity is a very complex topic. Simply because that is the very thing that Lomax found marketable about Leadbelly. So Leadbelly's essence is authenticity,while it is present, it is also the very thing that allowed Lomax to sell his music, through the popular culture media.
Also, I was interested in the comment directly above. The one that mentions the significance of Leadbelly's spoken interjections throughout the song and their significance. I almost feel that Leadbelly is making the song more intimate, speaking directly to the listener. And leaves you with the eerie sense that the song is directed towards you. At least if you are a female audience member. I would like to here other's points of view on this. I hope this helps coax in interesting discussion.
A.Bowlus