John Jacob Niles

With his high, ghostly wail and sparse dulcimer accompaniment, Kentucky-born folk singer John Jacob Niles had a haunting sound that brought life to the characters in the songs he performed. Niles began recording in the 1930s, after years spent collecting folk songs and publishing his transcriptions of them. His spooky, unforgettable sound was an influence on many '50s and '60s folk artists, including Bob Dylan. Niles spent his later years in the art-song realm, recording song cycles based on Thomas Merton poems.