From tales of jealous lovers to gunslinging outlaws and assassins, American roots music has long embraced the concept of the murder ballad. These seminal recordings offer an intriguing insight into this macabre genre which continues to be reinvented by musicians to this day.

01. B.F. Shelton: Pretty Polly
02. Jimmie Rodgers: Frankie and Johnny
03. Furry Lewis: Billy Lyons and Stack O’Lee
04. Bessie Smith: Send Me To The 'Lectric Chair
05. Grayson & Whitter: Tom Dooley
06. Kelly Harrell: Charles Guiteau
07. Clarence Ashley: Old John Hardy
08. Mississippi John Hurt: Louis Collins
09. Will Bennett: Railroad Bill
10. Victoria Spivey: Murder In The First Degree
11. Dick Justice: Henry Lee
12. Charlie Poole & The North Carolina Ramblers: White House Blues