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"Goodnight, Irene" or "Irene, Goodnight," is a 20th-century American folk standard, written in 3 4 time, first recorded by American blues musician Huddie 'Lead Belly' Ledbetter in 1933. A version recorded by the Weavers was a #1 hit in 1950. The lyrics tell of the singer's troubled past with his love, Irene, and express his sadness and frustration.
Huddie William Ledbetter (/ ˈ h j uː d i / HYOO-dee; January 1888 [1] [2] or 1889 [3] – December 6, 1949), [1] better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the folk standards he introduced, including his renditions of "In the Pines", "Pick a Bale of Cotton", "Goodnight, Irene ...
Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer-songwriter, musician and social activist. He was a fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, and had a string of hit records in the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, notably their recording of Lead Belly's "Goodnight, Irene," which topped the charts for 14 weeks in 1950.
[2] The Jenkins/Weavers version, released by Decca Records under catalog number 27077, was one side of a two-sided hit, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard magazine charts in 1950 while the flip side, "Goodnight Irene," reached No. 1. [3] Cromwell Music Inc., a subsidiary of Richmond/TRO, claimed the rights to the song, and had licensed the Decca ...
Of the Columbia River Ballads "Roll on, Columbia", which he set to a modified version of Huddie Ledbetter's "Goodnight, Irene", was by far the most popular. Because of the song's message and popularity, it was established as the official folk song of Washington in 1987. [3]
Davis wrote a variety of musical forms, including sentimental ballads, comic minstrel songs, art songs, and choral music. [7] He was best known in his own time for his "tear-jerkers". [ 1 ] [ 4 ] One of these was "Fatal Wedding" (1893), his first national hit; Davis composed the music, a waltz, while the words are credited to William H. Windom ...
McDonald was born in Anacortes, Washington, on September 25, 1948. [2] McDonald began singing at an early age. The first song she fully learned was "Goodnight Irene" by Huddie Leadbetter and at age two she would sing all five verses from her crib.
The recording stayed at number one on the charts for 13 weeks, the first folk song arrangement to achieve such success. "Goodnight, Irene" sold one million copies in 1950. [6] (Pete Seeger later wrote that total sales were about two million records.