James Carter was a singer and inmate of the Mississippi prison system. In 1959 Alan Lomax and Shirley Collins recorded him leading a group of fellow inmates in a work song, releasing it in the LP series Southern Journey along with a photo of the group. In 2000 he was credited on the O Brother, Where Art Thou soundtrack, which was largely inspired by the Southern Journey series. He died in 2003.
James Carter & The Prisoners's first song Po’ Lazarus released on Thu Jan 01 1970.