“Tom Dooley” is an old North Carolina folk song based on the 1866 murder of a woman named Laura Foster in Wilkes County, North Carolina. It is best known today because of a hit version recorded in 1958 by The Kingston Trio. This version was a multi-format hit, reaching #1 in Billboard, the Billboard R&B listing, and appearing in the Cashbox country music top 20. It fits within the wider genre of Appalachian ‘sweetheart murder ballad’ songs such as ‘Down in the Willow Garden’ and ‘Rose Connelly’, but ‘Tom Dooley’ is based on a real event. Continue reading →