Lesley Riddle
Encyclopedia
Lesley "Esley" Riddle was an African-American musician whose influence on the Carter Family
helped to shape country music
.
Riddle was born in Burnsville, North Carolina
. He grew up with his paternal grandparents near Kingsport, Tennessee
, not far from the Virginia
border.
While working as a young man at a cement plant, he tripped on an auger
. The resulting injury entailed the amputation of his right leg at the knee. While he recovered, he took up the guitar, developing an innovative picking and slide technique. Soon, he was collaborating with other musicians from Sullivan and Scott
counties, including Steve Tarter, Harry Gay, Brownie McGhee
and John Henry Lyons. One time, he met Blind Lemon Jefferson
at Tarter's house.
In 1928, Riddle met A.P. Carter, who had just founded the Carter Family country band. Riddle began to divide his time between Kingsport and the Carter home in Maces Spring, Virginia
. Riddle and Carter embarked on song-collecting trips around the region: Riddle would act as a "human tape recorder," memorizing the melody while Carter gathered lyrics.
The Carter Family went on to record a number of songs that Riddle either composed or transmitted, including "Cannonball Blues," "Hello Stranger," "I Know What It Means To Be Lonesome," "Let the Church Roll On," "Bear Creek Blues," "March Winds Goin'," "Blow My Blues Away" and "Lonesome For You." Riddle's guitar technique made an impression on Maybelle Carter
.http://www.swvamuseum.org/lesleyriddle.html
In 1937 Riddle got married, and in 1942 moved to Rochester, New York
. Soon he retired from music, and in 1945, he sold his guitar, remaining obscure for the next twenty years. In 1965, Mike Seeger
, fresh from a collaboration with Maybelle Carter, tracked down Riddle and persuaded him to return to recording music. Over the next 13 years, Riddle and Seeger made a series of studio recordings. Riddle also made appearances at the Smithsonian Folk Festival and the Mariposa Folk Festival
.
Riddle died in 1980 in Asheville, North Carolina
. In 1993, a selection from the sessions with Mike Seeger was released by Rounder Records
as Step By Step: Lesley Riddle Meets The Carter Family: Blues, Country & Sacred Songs.
Only July 31, 2008 a stage production about Riddle's life and his time with and influence on the Carter Family, world premiered at the Parkway Playhouse in Burnville, NC - birth place of Riddle. The show biographed the life of Esley and featured versions of songs as he played them, and then again as the Carters played them. The production was called "ESLEY: The life and music of Lesley Riddle" written by Jeff Douglas Messer, directed by Michael Lilly and starring Jim Arrendell as Esley.
Carter Family
The Carter Family was a traditional American folk music group that recorded between 1927 and 1956. Their music had a profound impact on bluegrass, country, Southern Gospel, pop and rock musicians as well as on the U.S. folk revival of the 1960s. They were the first vocal group to become country...
helped to shape country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
.
Riddle was born in Burnsville, North Carolina
Burnsville, North Carolina
Burnsville is a town in Yancey County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,623 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Yancey County.-Geography:Burnsville is located at ....
. He grew up with his paternal grandparents near Kingsport, Tennessee
Kingsport, Tennessee
Kingsport is a city located mainly in Sullivan County with some western portions in Hawkins County in the US state of Tennessee. The majority of the city lies in Sullivan County...
, not far from the Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
border.
While working as a young man at a cement plant, he tripped on an auger
Auger
An auger is a drilling device, or drill bit, that usually includes a rotating helical screw blade called a "flighting" to act as a screw conveyor to remove the drilled out material...
. The resulting injury entailed the amputation of his right leg at the knee. While he recovered, he took up the guitar, developing an innovative picking and slide technique. Soon, he was collaborating with other musicians from Sullivan and Scott
Scott County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 23,403 people, 9,795 households, and 7,023 families residing in the county. The population density was 44 people per square mile . There were 11,355 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...
counties, including Steve Tarter, Harry Gay, Brownie McGhee
Brownie McGhee
Walter Brown McGhee was a Piedmont blues singer and guitarist, best known for his collaborations with the harmonica player Sonny Terry.-Life and career:...
and John Henry Lyons. One time, he met Blind Lemon Jefferson
Blind Lemon Jefferson
"Blind" Lemon Jefferson was an American blues singer and guitarist from Texas. He was one of the most popular blues singers of the 1920s, and has been titled "Father of the Texas Blues"....
at Tarter's house.
In 1928, Riddle met A.P. Carter, who had just founded the Carter Family country band. Riddle began to divide his time between Kingsport and the Carter home in Maces Spring, Virginia
Maces Spring, Virginia
Maces Spring is a small unincorporated community in Scott County, Virginia, United States, along State Route 614. The settlement consists of a small number of houses. There are now no stores in Maces Spring and its main claim to fame is its association with the country music group, the Carter...
. Riddle and Carter embarked on song-collecting trips around the region: Riddle would act as a "human tape recorder," memorizing the melody while Carter gathered lyrics.
The Carter Family went on to record a number of songs that Riddle either composed or transmitted, including "Cannonball Blues," "Hello Stranger," "I Know What It Means To Be Lonesome," "Let the Church Roll On," "Bear Creek Blues," "March Winds Goin'," "Blow My Blues Away" and "Lonesome For You." Riddle's guitar technique made an impression on Maybelle Carter
Maybelle Carter
"Mother" Maybelle Carter was an American country musician. She is best known as a member of the historic Carter Family act in the 1920s and 1930s and also as a member of Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters.-Biography:...
.http://www.swvamuseum.org/lesleyriddle.html
In 1937 Riddle got married, and in 1942 moved to Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
. Soon he retired from music, and in 1945, he sold his guitar, remaining obscure for the next twenty years. In 1965, Mike Seeger
Mike Seeger
Mike Seeger was an American folk musician and folklorist. He was a distinctive singer and an accomplished musician who played autoharp, banjo, fiddle, dulcimer, guitar, mouth harp, mandolin, dobro, jaw harp, and pan pipes. Seeger, a half-brother of Pete Seeger, produced more than 30 documentary...
, fresh from a collaboration with Maybelle Carter, tracked down Riddle and persuaded him to return to recording music. Over the next 13 years, Riddle and Seeger made a series of studio recordings. Riddle also made appearances at the Smithsonian Folk Festival and the Mariposa Folk Festival
Mariposa Folk Festival
The Mariposa Folk Festival was founded in 1961 in Orillia, Ontario. It was held in Orillia for three years before being banned because of disturbances by festival-goers. After being held in various places in Ontario for a few decades, it returned to Orillia in 2000. Ruth Jones, her husband Dr...
.
Riddle died in 1980 in Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active...
. In 1993, a selection from the sessions with Mike Seeger was released by Rounder Records
Rounder Records
Rounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students...
as Step By Step: Lesley Riddle Meets The Carter Family: Blues, Country & Sacred Songs.
Only July 31, 2008 a stage production about Riddle's life and his time with and influence on the Carter Family, world premiered at the Parkway Playhouse in Burnville, NC - birth place of Riddle. The show biographed the life of Esley and featured versions of songs as he played them, and then again as the Carters played them. The production was called "ESLEY: The life and music of Lesley Riddle" written by Jeff Douglas Messer, directed by Michael Lilly and starring Jim Arrendell as Esley.