Deford bailey biography of martin
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Bailey, DeFord 1899–1982
Musician
Learned to Play the Harmonica
Began Radio Career
Fired from the Opry
Appeared on Television Shows
Sources
The son of a tenant farmer, DeFord Bailey was born on December 14, 1899, in Smith County, Tennessee.
His mother, Mary Reedy Bailey chose the name DeFord in honor of two of her teachers—Mr.
Deford bailey biography of martin
DeBerry and Mrs. Stella Ford. Bailey was not raised by his parents, since his father, John Henry Bailey, moved away and remarried, and his mother died within a year of his birth. His father’s younger sister, Barbara Lou Bailey, and the man she married, Chuck Odum, took charge of the child.
Musical talent existed within each branch of Bailey’s family, and, indeed, Bailey once claimed that, as a child, he was given a mouth harp instead of a rattle.
His paternal grandfather, Lewis Bailey, was considered the best musician in Smith County. Bailey’s father and other family members sometimes performed in a popular string band. Y