5 Famous American Folk Music Songs

Check out these five famous American folk music songs that are sure to get you singing along!

“The Wabash Cannonball”

“The Wabash Cannonball” is a folk song about a fictional train, thought to have originated in the late 1800s. The song was popularized by the Carter Family, and has been recorded by many other artists. It remains a popular folk song today.

“The House of the Rising Sun”

“The House of the Rising Sun” is a traditional folk song, sometimes called “Rising Sun Blues”. It tells of a life gone wrong in New Orleans; many versions also urge a young man to avoid the same fate. The most successful commercial version, recorded in 1964 by British rock group The Animals, was a number one hit on the UK Singles Chart and also in the United States and France.

The song was recorded by Rody Wiley for Vocalion Records in 1933. It was also popularized by Woody Guthrie and Lead Belly, and later by Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan. In the early 1960s, it was performed by Joan Baez, Bob Gibson, Odetta and Judy Collins. Dylan’s recording appeared on his eponymous album debut in 1962. Seeger’s 1962 rendition with The Weavers helped propel the song to international prominence.

“The House of the Rising Sun” has been recorded by numerous artists including folk singer Annie Lou Taylor, who made it popular in her home state of Kentucky; Harry Belafonte; Nina Simone; faith healer Florac Singson; country singers Frankie Laine, Merle Travis and Tex Ritter; blues singer Big Mama Thornton; jazz musicians Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday and Chet Baker; pop singer Donovan; rock groups Eric Burdon & The Animals, Creedence Clearwater Revival (as “The Gories”) and Grateful Dead; post-punk band Siouxsie and the Banshees (as “The Mynah Birds”); new wave band Eurythmics (as “Sun”); industrial band Ministry (as “My Son”); and gothic rock band Sisters of Mercy (as “SOS”).

“The Streets of Laredo”

“The Streets of Laredo” is a traditional American folk song about a dying cowboy. It has been called “the saddest song in the world.” The song tells the story of a young cowboy who is fatally wounded and is being tended to by a woman. He tells her his story and asks her to bury him in his boots.

The song has been covered by many artists, including Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Bob Dylan.

“Down in the Valley”

“Down in the Valley” is a traditional American folk song that was popularized by The Kentucky Headhunters in the early 1990s. The song is about a young man who goes to the city to find work and ends up falling in love with a young woman. The song has been covered by many artists, including Johnny Cash and Emmylou Harris.

The Kentucky Headhunters’ version of “Down in the Valley” peaked at number four on the Billboard country charts and won the Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 1992.

“Oh, Susanna”

“Oh, Susanna” is a minstrel song wrote by Stephen Foster in 1848. The song was first published as sheet music in 1848 and was originally sung by Dan Emmett, one of the most popular minstrel performers of the time. “Oh, Susanna” became one of the most widely known and popular songs of the 19th century, with dozens of performers creating their own versions of the song. The lyrics of “Oh, Susanna” tell the story of a young man travelling westward who falls in love with a girl named Susanna.

The popularity of “Oh, Susanna” helped to spread interest in folk music throughout America, and it remains one of the most famous and iconic American folk songs.