“Babe I’m Gonna Leave You“ First Ever Recordings

These are the very first ever recordings of “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You“, long before Led Zepplin even existed. The first is by the song’s author Anne Bredon, who wrote the songs in the late 50’s, and this recording dates from approx. 1959, and is a home recording. The recordings is a little rough, but you can absolutely recognize the song. The second recording is from Janet Smith from approx 1961 when she was attending Oberlin College. She heard Anne play it on a college radio show, and Anne to teach it to her. Janet then developed her own arrangement of the song, and you can clearly hear this is the arrangement of the song that was later made famous by Joan Baez. Janet is the one who taught the song Joan, and from there the song entered repertoire of many folk, pop, and rock artists, being recorded by The Association, obscure British Rn’B band The Plebs, and eventually Led Zepplin and Quicksilver Messenger Service. Enjoy!!!