Lead Belly Reissues as Sound Documentary

We are fortunate to have Lead Belly's Last Sessions available. It is not only a document of an important figure in American music, it is also a document of an important moment in the history of sound recordings. Originally published in 1954 by Folkways Records, it consisted of ninety-four separate items, mainly songs, on four twelve-inch LP records in two double-sleeved albums that were replaced after the first printing by boxes. In 1994 Smithsonian Folkways republished it in this four-CD boxed set that adds two previously unissued songs and some additional notes while retaining the original notes and sequencing. Each CD contains both sides of one original LP. This is the first time it has been reviewed in this journal. Following its reissue, Smithsonian Folkways released the three-volume Lead Belly Legacy series that brings together another ninety-four titles. Some of these are reissues, while others were previously unissued. Almost all were recorded prior to Last Sessions, the set on which this review focuses

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