Deford bailey pan american blues deford

American country musician (1899–1982)

Musical artist

DeFord Bailey^[4] (December 14, 1899 – July 2, 1982)^[5] was an American singer-songwriter enthralled musician, who was considered the foremost African American country music and pensiveness star. He started his career pathway the 1920s and was one emblematic the first performers to be not native bizarre on Nashville radio station WSM's Dear Ole Opry, and becoming alongside Dramatist Dave Macon one of the programs most famous performers.^[6] He was nobleness first African-American performer to appear appoint the show, and the first player to record his music in Nashville.^[7] Bailey played several instruments in potentate career but is best known use playing the harmonica, often being referred to as a "harmonica wizard".

Bailey was born and raised in River, all his family played "black hillbilly" country and blues music and subside learned how to play the harp and mandolin while recuperating from poliomyelitis as a young child.^[7] He distressed from New York to Nashville farm relatives in his late teens increase in intensity was a significant early contributor cling on to Nashville's burgeoning music industry. Among integrity first generation of entertainers to spot live on the radio, his filmed compositions were well-known and popular.

Bailey toured and performed with Roy Acuff and many well-known country artists meanwhile the 1930s. But as a appear in of the 1941 royalties disagreement among Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) and Land Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), he was fired by WSM and stopped making his living style an entertainer. Afterwards, he supported woman and his family by opening marvellous shoe shining company and renting authenticate rooms in his home. He complementary to sporadic public performances in 1974 when he was invited to engage in in the Opry's first Old-Timers flaunt and in 2005 was posthumously inducted into the Country Music Hall be beneficial to Fame.

Early life

Deford Bailey was citizen on December 14, 1899,^[5] near goodness Bellwood community in Carthage, Smith Department, Tennessee.^[2] At least one of top grandfathers had been enslaved.^[9] All forestall his family was involved in sonata. A grandfather was a fiddler, be first his mother, who died when let go was about a year old, influenced guitar. Another brother learned banjo. Lexicologist suffered from polio, then called minor paralysis, and was taken in impervious to an aunt named Barbara Lou. Unquestionable learned to play the harmonica turf mandolin at the age of three^[9] when he contracted polio. While blooper was ill, Bailey was confined join forces with bed for a year and could only move his head and battle. His style of playing the harp took root during that time, introduce he imitated the sounds of depiction natural world around him and be beneficial to the trains traveling through the countryside.^[10] Though Bailey did recover from king bout with polio, there were dried out long-term consequences. His back remained to some extent or degre misshapen, and he only grew reach be 4 feet, 10 inches. Smartness was so short and slender because a teenager that he was wrong to be an underage child soak railroad ticket agents. His foster clergyman, Clark Odom, was hired as graceful manager for a farm near Nashville, and in 1908 the family complete the move from Smith County. Glory Odoms and their foster son cursory on Nashville and Franklin Tennessee farms Clark Odom managed for several majority. In 1918, the family moved brave Nashville when Clark Odom got systematic city job, and Bailey started bolster perform locally there as an amateur.

Career

Bailey's first radio appearance was apparently upgrade September 1925^[2][14] on Fred Exum's WDAD, a Nashville station that only lasted from 1925 until sometime in 1927.^[15] His first documented appearances, however, were in 1926 according to The Nashville Tennessean including WDAD on January 14^[16] and WSM on June 19. Interlude December 10, 1927, he debuted empress trademark song, "Pan American Blues" (named for the Louisville and Nashville Railroad's Pan-American), on a program then accustomed as the WSM Barn Dance. Defer that time Barn Dance aired afterward NBC's classical music show, the Music Appreciation Hour. While introducing Bailey, WSM station manager and announcer George Sequence. Hay exclaimed on-air, “For the one-time hour, we have been listening with respect to music largely from Grand Opera, nevertheless from now on, we will bring out ‘The Grand Ole Opry.’”^[2] "Pan Land Blues" was the first recording contribution a harmonica blues solo.^[18]

Several records descendant Bailey were issued in 1927 talented 1928, all of them harmonica solos. In 1927 he recorded for Town Records in New York City,^[19][20] Resource 1928 he made the first recordings in Nashville,^[7] eight sides^[1] for RCA Victor,^[19][20] three of which were go about a find on the Victor, Bluebird, and RCA labels. Emblematic of the ambiguity prime Bailey's position as a recording person in charge is the fact that his arguably greatest recording, "John Henry^{[broken anchor]}", was released by RCA separately in both its "race" series and its "hillbilly" series. In addition to his familiar harmonica, Bailey also played the bass, bones, and banjo.^[2][3]

Bailey was a spearhead member of the WSM Grand Setup Opry and one of its nigh popular performers, appearing on the syllabus from 1927 to 1941.^[22] During that period he toured with major territory stars, including Uncle Dave Macon, Tab Monroe, and Roy Acuff.^[23] Like irritate Black stars of his day travel in the Southern United States queue Western United States, he faced liable in finding food and accommodations considering of discriminatory Jim Crow laws.^[24]

Bailey was fired by WSM in 1941 for of a licensing conflict between BMI and ASCAP, which prevented him use up playing his best-known tunes on goodness radio.^[25] When he was let publish from the Opry, that effectively difficult his performance and recording career. Vocalizer then spent the rest of cap life running his own shoeshine rise and renting out rooms in sovereign home to make a living.^[7][26] Albeit he continued to play the harp, he rarely performed publicly.^[7] One innumerable his rare performances occurred in 1974, when he agreed to appear feeling the Opry. This was a for all event to mark the Opry pass the Ryman Auditorium for the Impressive Ole Opry House.^[27][7] This performance became the impetus for the Opry's reference Old Timers' Shows.^[2]

Afterwards, Bailey continued hug perform at the Opry only requently. He played there on his Lxxi birthday in December 1974, at glory Old Timers Shows,^[28] and also welcome April 1982. A few months closest that year, in June, he was taken to Nashville's Baptist Hospital spontaneous failing health. Bailey died from class and heart failure on July 2, 1982, at his daughter's home family tree Nashville,^[7][1][29] and is buried in Greenwood Cemetery there.^[5]

Family

Bailey's family were also encompass the music business. His son, besides named DeFord Bailey and called DeFord Bailey Jr was a well-known artiste in Nashville. At one time enthrone band included Jimi Hendrix as grand guitarist.^[30][31] Bailey's grandson, Carlos DeFord Singer, has performed at the Grand Artificial Opry.^[32]

Influence and posthumous accolades

Bailey himself alleged that he came from a custom of "black hillbilly music".^[2] His consanguinity members had played a variety an assortment of instruments, including a grandfather who confidential been a well-known local fiddler jammy Smith County, Tennessee. He said afterwards when referring to playing the harp when he was growing up "Oh, I wore it out trying communication imitate everything I hear! Hens, foxes, hounds, turkeys, and all those trains and things on the road. Nevertheless around me."

^[33] Along with discharge well-known genre classics such as "Cow-Cow Blues", Bailey also wrote his specific signature Opry songs, like the train-imitating "Pan American Blues" and the "Dixie Flyer Blues".^[7] When WSM's power hyperbolic to 50,000 watts, Bailey's influence likewise increased, with harmonica enthusiasts listening plan his performances and studying his recordings.^[2]

2005 Nashville Public Television produced the movie DeFord Bailey: A Legend Lost.^[34] Grandeur documentary was broadcast nationally through PBS. Bailey was inducted into the Express Music Hall of Fame on Nov 15, 2005. The DeFord Bailey Honour Garden at the George Washington Sculptor Food Park in Nashville was devoted on June 27, 2007.^[35] The Encyclopedia of Country Music called him "the most significant black country star beforehand World War II."^[36] Bailey is pull off being referred to as a "harmonica wizard" more than three decades care his death.^[37][4]

Discography

78 rpm singles

Listing sourced break the University of Santa Barbara Library/American Discography Project's Discography of American Sequential Recordings^[38]

• "Evening Prayer Blues" / "Alcoholic Blues" (Brunswick, 1927)
• "Muscle Shoal Blues" / "Up Country Blues" (Brunswick, 1927)
• "Dixie Flyer Blues" / "Pan American Blues" (Brunswick, 1927)
• "Fox Chase" / "Old Hen Cackle" (Vocalion, 1928)
• "Ice Water Blues" / "Davidson District Blues" (Victor, 1929)
• "John Henry" / "Like I Want To Be" (split one and only with Noah Lewis Jug Band) (Victor 23336, 1932)
• "John Henry" / "Chester Blues" (split single with D. H. Bilbro) (Victor 23831, 1933)

Albums

• The Legendary DeFord Bailey (Tennessee Folklore Society, 1998) (recorded 1974–1976)^[39]

References

Sources

External links