Eddie Barefield

Barefield was born in Scandia, Iowa, on December 12, 1909. He grew up in Des Moines. His father was a coal miner, boxer, baseball player, and guitarist, and his mother was a pianist. Barefield began playing the saxophone at the age of twelve. His mother bought him the instrument as a Christmas gift, and he took it apart to see how it worked. He started playing throughout the Midwest, and gained his first major big-band experience with the Bennie Moten orchestra of 1932 He was survived by his wife and daughter, Patricia Poindexter. == Discography ==