Voices of New Orleans

"The very first night we moved in you could immediately sense it in your eyes, nose and throat." — Paul Stewart on moving into a toxic FEMA trailer

Music Friday: Led Zeppelin sings Memphis Minnie & Kansas Joe

by Colleen Mondor
April 05, 2007

Originally written in 1929 by Blues singer Memphis Minnie and performed by Minnie and her husband Kansas Joe McCoy, "When the Levee Breaks" was written for the African American workers who were not allowed to leave the levees during the 1927 Mississippi flood. (You can download their version of the song here, for free.) It's a bitter song that Led Zeppelin made their own in 1971. Rarely played live by the rock group, it has become one of their most famous songs and found new popularity in Louisiana in the days after Katrina.

Behind the cut, Led Zeppelin sings the words of Memphis Minnie to images of Katrina.

Comments

Daniel Pennant

April 7, 2007 12:43 AM

i also like this song. a friend i met on ebonyfriends.com recommend it to me. he said many black like it.

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After Katrina and its horrible aftermath, Chin Music Press felt compelled to shine its wobbly flashlight on New Orleans. This effort resulted in our second book, Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans? Along the way, we met a community of passionate, eloquent writers who care deeply about what happens to the Big Easy. This blog became a natural extension of the book. It's our way of adding voices to the unfolding story of New Orleans.


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