Norman Woodlieff
Musician · 1901–1985 · Rural Hall, North Carolina
Best known for
Songwriter
Norman Woodlieff was the guitarist on Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers’ first recording sessions — the 1925 Columbia sides that helped establish the Piedmont string-band sound and that gave the world “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down Blues.” Outside the studio he worked the textile mills of the Roanoke River valley and made his living as a sign painter and commercial artist.
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- Born Norman Lee Woodlieff on March 13, 1901, in Rural Hall, North Carolina; his family moved to Spray (now part of Eden) in 1910, where he and his older brother worked in the cotton mills.
- Joined Charlie Poole and fiddler Posey Rorer in 1925 to form the original North Carolina Ramblers; the trio left Spray that summer and headed to New York to record.
- Played guitar on the Ramblers’ debut Columbia session on July 27, 1925, including the breakout side “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down Blues.”
- Was the band’s guitarist on its first four recordings before being replaced by Roy Harvey.
- Worked outside music as a sign painter and commercial artist, producing advertisements, album art, and comic-strip work.
- Died February 10, 1985.
