DeFord Bailey: A Black Star in Early Country Music

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Univ. of Tennessee Press, 1993 - Biography & Autobiography - 224 pages
Bailey is largely forgotten today, a victim of the recording industry's emphasis on the blues during the 1920s--a decision which segregated forever "black" folk music from "white" folk music. Bailey was from an African American mountain culture that shared much of its musical heritage with its Anglo-Saxon neighbors, producing a unique hybrid which Bailey called "black hillbilly." A virtuoso on the harmonica, guitar, and banjo, Bailey became one of the Grand Old Opry's earliest stars during the 1920s, only to be fired from the Opry in 1941 during one of the Opry's more repressive eras. Bailey's story is told mainly in his own words through interviews conducted by his longtime friend Morton, with Wolfe (English and folklore, Middle Tennessee State Univ.) providing cultural and historical background. The authors' stated goal was to write a book of universal appeal, and indeed the work is a fascinating cultural history. -- Library Journal
 

Contents

They Didnt Give Me No Rattler They Gave Me a Harp
12
The Worlds Pet
40
Them Songs
60
X
81
We Got Their Best Harp Player
83
Bailey with His Foot on a CocaCola Crate
97
Cousin Wilbur Bill Westbrook with Bailey
115
They Turned Me Loose to Root Hog or Die
121
Bailey with Sign for His Shoeshine Shop
134
We Got to Meet Jesus Someday
140
DeFord Bailey Jr with Members of His Band
149
David Morton Holding Microphone While Bailey Plays Banjo
166
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