Tracing The History Of “Black Betty” – From A Southern State Prison To The Superbowl
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (Photo by Scott Gries/Getty Images)
Covered by artists from Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds to Tom Jones, last night’s “update” of the song was done by Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.
“Black Betty originated as an African-American work song and was first recorded in the early 1930′s by James “Iron Head” Baker, a convict in Central State Farm, (a state prison farm) located in Sugar Land, Texas.
In 1939, the song was performed by Lead Belly, (who himself served time in State prison farms) recorded under the Musicraft label in New York, and was later released commercially.
Rockers, Ram Jam recorded the song in 1977 under the Epic label and the track became an instant hit, later sparking a series of dance remixes. This is still the most well-known take on the song.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds took a stab at the song in 1986…
…And as part of his millennium comeback, Tom Jones covered the track in 2002, incorrectly dedicating the song to Lead Belly.
Since then, there have been a series of further remixes and mash-ups produced and last night we can add the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion‘s cover to the list.
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