He was known first and primarily as a folk performer during the 1950s, when he made early and influential recordings of such songs as "Sinner Man" and "Lemon Tree", for which he wrote the English lyrics.
Born in Portland, Maine, but growing up in North Bridgton, Will Holt (his full name) learned to play the piano as a child.
He attended Phillips Exeter Academy and Williams College, and studied with folk singer Richard Dyer-Bennet at the School for American Minstrels in Aspen, Colorado.
starring two of the Andrews Sisters, a nostalgic look at the home front in World War II, with songs provided by the Sherman Brothers.
In 1988 he won the Los Angeles Dramalogue Critics Award for A Walk on the Wild Side, a musical based on Nelson Algren's novel.