Barriemore Barlow

Heretic

Master of Disaster
Is anybody else a fan of this fine drummer? John Bonham referred to him as one of the greatest drummers England ever produced--a decade with Jethro Tull, and some nice work on Robert Plant solo works. Absolutely beautiful work on Songs from the Wood and Heavy Horses (albums) with Jethro Tull. I saw him back in the day, playing his Vistalites kit, which can be seen here:

http://www.vistalites.com/legends/barlow.htm



Can't get any sense of what he is doing now, but absloutely one of my favorites.

Any other fans out there or any news of what he is up to now? He ought to be on this site somewhere.
 
i was a huge tull fan growing up, so dug him by default. some people think its sounds really dated, and maybe it does, but i always liked the thick, thuddy drum sound he got. it worked really well with the music. i have a ton of tull albums, but benefit, songs from the wood, heavy horses, a, passion play, thick as a brick were always tops. the live stuff is great.

i lost track, so didn't realize he was not with them, but i thought i read something about him going through a heavy divorce and having to sell a ton of stuff, etc. so maybe he's recovering from all that. don't quote me, though. could've been another player.
 
Barlow did some pretty cool timing stuff on "The Principle Of Moments" album.

Good listen if you never have.
 
Check out Kerry Livgren's (of the band KANSAS) "Seeds of Change" album from 1980. Barlow plays on "Just One Way"..."Mask Of the Great Deceiver"...."How Can You Live"....and "Down to the Core." Barlow goes ape on "Just One Way" at the end of the song and it is well worth a listen. His cymbals do sound like Paiste 2oo2s to me btw.
 
Just saw this post but had to chime in. This guy is quite a player. For those unaware check out his playing on the Tull tune Minstrel In The Gallery. Whew! I was lucky enough to see him live with Tull back in the 70s. I can't believe his name is not mentioned with some of the great rock players...highly underrated or just missed the screen for some reason.
 
I met Barrie back in 2003. I play with Italy's official Tull tribute band and he came to see us play the whole "A Passion Play" album back to back. The gig took place at Teatro Magnani in Fidenza, Italy.
He signed my drum scores (23 pages!) and asked for a copy. Quite a gentleman, he is. He's very good friends with Clive Bunker, who he sees quite a bit.
Barrie now runs his own studio, called The Doghouse, outside of London.
 
I've always been a big Barlowe fan. It think he is the most underrated of the Brit classic rock drummers; but he had the best technique out of any of' em.
 
Sergio--how did you get his drum scores (or did you transcribe them yourself)? I can never find transcriptions of much Tull drum scores, much less the material Barlow played--which I say is just fantastic composition, very unusual material.

I gather you're the drummer for Beggar's Farm--very nice.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
he has always been in my top five. besides his incredible natural technique and blistering chops he always played the unexpected part. and these little orchestrations just flowed out of him with such grace. a true original. his rudimental technique is blistering also, listen to the press rolls in thick as a brick. if you study minstrel in the gallery you will find some of the most tasteful double bass work on record. he didnt use them to propel the song, he just sprinkled a little doublebass here and there to evoke power, or as a foundation with a quiet rumble of thunder really low in the mix. when i play a solo i cant help but inject parts of his bursting out solo (conundrum) well the easier parts anyway here and there. ok thats it ill just say listen to minstrel in the gallery from end to end and see what you think. be well, PP
 
Yes,and the Conundrum solo is only the tip of the arrow as to what this guy is really capable of. Unfortunately,I never got the chance to see Tull during their Prog-Rock heyday,but I do have a nice bootleg double-disk set of their L.A concert from 1973. It has a complete version of Passion Play and an incredible rendition of the second half of Thick As A Brick wherein Barlow delivers an absolutely blistering 10-minute drum solo. I agree with everyone here,Barrie Barlow is completely underrated. His drumming on the Robert Plant lps is also the stuff of legend.
 
Heya Everyone! Love all BB's stuff! Especially the usually overlooked TOTRRTYTD and Heavy Horses. Great Latin and jazz back beats thrown in subtly here and there. Someone listen to "Quiz Kid" and tell me what the hell he does when Ian sings "....for a weekend of high life, they'll wine you, dine you, undermine you...." Its just great. The album Minstreal in the Gallery defines progressive rock drumming as much as I would say Bill Ward did with Sabbath. I just had to join this forum to add my suport for Barriemore. Lets get him his own page on DW! I must say I was amazed when he wasnt listed! Anyway, I have real soft spot for Barriemore as I tend to play similar stuff when banging away at my set. He always has a wonderfull round quaility to the whole of his playing even when the immeadiate beat/measure seems blocky and rigidly structured. Also a good mention for those unfaniliar with them. Check out the band -Acid Bath- whose (I believe) Bassist died in a car crash and the band is no longer together but the drummer Jimmy Kyle (although maybe a little rough) had some very Barriemore stuff going on amongst his death metal beats. There two albums are worth a listen or ten. Get past the initial shock off your first listen and I promise you'll grow to love them. Cheers!
 
There's a nice article with Barrie in Drumhead magazine this month. He claims to be a self-schooled drummer. It has Bill Bruford on the cover, so you get two prog greats for the price of one.

Barrie says he's ready to start playing again, and I for one, am ready to hear him.
 
Was in Guitar Center in Boston yesterday, saw the Drumhead Magazine and grabbed it right up--I was going to post it here, but I see somebody already saw it.

Great interview--now I understand why he had disappeared from sight for so long.

Delighted that Bernard noticed and put him on the site--that was a real omission in my view. He's absolutely a great, great drummer, and I am glad to see him here. Nice work Bernard!

Glad to hear he may be playing again--it would be great to see him at work again.
 
Hey!

just saw this, yes I did transcribe the whole second half of A Passion Play myself. Some parts just list the time signatures and the grooves but most of it it's note-for-note. I can make copies and send them to you. I also have the whole Minstrel In The Gallery album transcribed if anyone wishes to have those, Baker St. Muse and all, and most Tull songs with Barrie like Dark Ages, No Lullaby and many more.

I can not find that mag Drum Head over here. Any chances of someone getting it for me in change of some Barlow transcriptions? Even just photocopies of the Barrie interview?

Sergio
 
absolutely agree to everything...so added Barriemore Barlow to the gallery...

http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Barriemore_Barlow.html

...and also heard, that he picked up the sticks again and would love to play in a good funky jazzy band if there is any around.....

Bernhard

Yeah, now we need you to go shoot a VID of him, Bernard!.. would be great to see him play again. He was so far ahead of most of his contemporaries, technique wise, IMO.

In an era of bashers and thrashers, he, Bonham & Mitchell, really stood out for their technique.
 
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