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Born January 5, 1893, in Chapel Hill, NC
Died June 29, 1987, in Syracuse, NY
At the age of 90, Libba Cotten won a 1984 Grammy Award for her album Elizabeth Cotten Live! Singer, storyteller, composer, and musician, she worked as a housekeeper for decades before beginning a performing career at age 67. She wrote numerous songs that have been covered by groups as diverse as Peter, Paul, and Mary and the Grateful Dead. Until her death at age 95, she continued to perform around the country in her three-fingered alternating bass style, now called “Cotten picking” in her honor. She was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022.