Biography
Hedwig Grace West, 6 April 1938, Cartersville, Georgia, USA, d. 3 July 2005, New York, USA. West’s father was Don West, a trade union organizer during the 30s, and a well-known Southern poet. Her father’s union activities gave her a wealth of songs to draw on, in particular the many mining songs that prevailed at the time. Although West played largely all-American traditional music, she did include contemporary pieces in her repertoire. She later recorded traditional songs, such as ‘Barbara Allen’, as well as folk standards like ‘500 Miles’ and ‘Shady Grove’. This led to the legendary A.L. Lloyd calling her the best female American folk singer of the 60s revival. Many of the songs West knew had been handed down from previous generations of her family. She had learned to play piano while aged four, and turned to the banjo, the instrument she became best known for, when at school. She later took up the guitar.
Read the Full Biography of Hedy West / Bill Clifton
|
OLDIES.com on
|
