Cantwell says, 'Huddie =Hudson'! SAY WHAT?????

Subject: Cantwell says,"Huddie=Hudson"! SAY WHAT???????????
From: Art Thieme
Date: 02 May 98 - 03:39 AM

Robert Cantwell in his book _When We Were Good_(Harvard Univ. Press) says that Leadbelly's first name was HUDSON (therefore Huddie). I've never heard that anywhere before. Is this false or actual??? Seems outrageous to me.

Art Thieme

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Frank in the swamps
Date: 02 May 98 - 07:08 AM

I agree Arthur, it thiemes awful strange to me.

Frank i.t.s.

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: S.P. Buck Mulligan
Date: 02 May 98 - 08:01 AM

I have read that Leadbelly pronounced his first name "HEW-dee", not "H^Dee" (the caret being the stressed equivalent of schwa, as the 'u' in "button"). This would seem to me to argue strongly against "Hudson" which I doubt has ever been pronounced "HEW-D-son" anywhere. Could be wrong.

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Roger Himler
Date: 02 May 98 - 08:13 AM

I agree with Buck. Lead Belly's niece definitely pronounces his first name as HEW-dee. It's not likely to have come from Hudson. She probably also knows from whence the name comes.

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Art Thieme
Date: 02 May 98 - 08:39 PM

Look, Cantwell usually does his homework before printing something! So does the Harvard University Press! But could be something got by 'em. Who has some notated information???????

Art

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From:
Date: 02 May 98 - 08:58 PM

Leadbelly himself pronounces it as Hewdie. I forget which song, but it is one of those phrases like "If anyone asks you who composed this song, tell 'em it was Huddie Ledbetter and he's been here and gone".

I wonder if his birth certificate is still available. I forget the name of the little town closest to the farm where he was born, but it might still be in their archives.

It might be interesting to see if there are other people in that part of the world with that name. Any mudcatters from Texas/Louisiana who can answer that?

Murray

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Will
Date: 02 May 98 - 09:50 PM

I think that the line is from "Fannin Street". Not sure what recording.

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Barry Finn
Date: 02 May 98 - 11:33 PM

"You caused me to weep, you caused me to moan
You cased me to leave my home
But the very last words I heard her say
Was huddie won't you sing me one last song"

don't know if that's from Leadbelly or if it came to be that way after-words (chuckle). Barry

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Art Thieme
Date: 03 May 98 - 01:10 AM

You guys drove me to down a double Laphraoig!!!

I don't give a flying...--CARE how anyone chooses to pronounce it!!! You can call him Godzilla for all I care! But is his name HUDSON or is it not???

art

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From:
Date: 03 May 98 - 01:27 AM

My cars a Hudson, runs on No leadbelly gas

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Frank in the swamps
Date: 03 May 98 - 05:03 AM

My car is very old, it runs on unleaded, but it likes ledbetter.

Frank (long live Laphraoig)i.t.s.

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Helen
Date: 03 May 98 - 05:19 AM

If you check out the Mudcat info on Leadbelly it says he was born Huddie William Ledbetter, and all the other sites I found when I did an internet search just showed his name as Huddie, so maybe that was it - not short for anything else, just Huddie.

On another note, I like the name of the the robert Plant & Jimmy Page (ie. ex Led Zeppelin members) video I have. Instead of calling it "unplugged" i.e. acoustic, they called it "Unledded".

Kind of relates to this thread in another way because page & Plant sang Gallows Pole as well.

Helen

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Helen
Date: 03 May 98 - 05:21 AM

Sorry, forgot the site address for the Mudcat Leadbelly page.

http://www.deltablues.com/huddie.htm

Helen

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: viperky
Date: 03 May 98 - 02:39 PM

iN ALL THE YEARS i TRAVELLED AND SANG WITH LEADBELLY, HE NEVER INDICATED THAT HE WAS "hUDSON" OR ANYTHING BUT "hUDDIE". M ARTHA, TINY AND BROWNIE AND SONNY NEVER INDICATED THAT HE WAS ANYTHING BUT "HUDDIE". ALAN LOMAX NEVER INDICATED THAT THAT HE WAS ANYTHING BUT "HUDDIE". MAYBE HE HATED THE NAME "HUDSON". " OSCAR BRAND" IS BAD ENOUGH, BUT I'D HATE TO BE CALLED "HUDSON" or "EDSEL"...

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Art Thieme
Date: 03 May 98 - 03:43 PM

Oscar, THANKS! ---and thanks to all here! If it IS you, Oscar, it's good to meet ya finally--took cyberspace to do it)! Admire your "Blinded By Turds"!

ROBERT CANTWELL, if you're out there, please tell why you said HUDSON??

Art

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: Art Thieme
Date: 03 May 98 - 03:49 PM

WHOOPS--

VIPERKY could only be J.R. & George. Thank you! Grand seeing you in Memphis!

Love,

Art

Subject: RE: Cantwell says,
From: S.P. Buck YouKnowWho
Date: 03 May 98 - 08:57 PM

Art, the only reason for contemplating the pronunciation is to shed light on a potential derivation. But you know that....