Ignored Obscured Restored
John Barbata is most well-known as the drummer for Jefferson Starship. He died on May 8th at the age of 79.
His career began much earlier than his mid/late 70s run with the Starship. In the mid-60s, Barbata joined the Turtles at the recommendation of the Byrds’ Gene Clark. He was the drummer on their first hit, “Happy Together.”
“Happy Together” spent three weeks at the top of the charts in 1967. It’s a chestnut that we all know and love.
By the early 70s, Barbata had hitched his cart to Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. He was the drummer on the tour that produced the 4 Way Street album. He collaborated with those fellows in all their different configurations. One of the best is “Immigration Man,” a song from the first Crosby & Nash album, simply called Graham Nash David Crosby (1972).
“Immigration Man” was released as a single and should have fared better than its peak of #36 on the Billboard Hot 100. It has luxurious harmonies and a tasteful solo provided by Dave Mason.
I would be remiss if I didn’t also acknowledge his work with the Starship. Their most successful album was Red Octopus which contained the Marty Balin classic “Miracles.”
“Miracles” didn’t quite reach the heights of “Happy Together,” but it came damned close. It soared to #3 and parked there for three weeks in 1975. Non-band member Irv Cox adds a screaming sax solo to this soft rock gem.
Besides the groups mentioned, Barbata contributed to the work of many other artists. Too many, in fact, to mention in this short post. But to name a few, he drummed with Lee Michaels, Linda Ronstadt, Ry Cooder, Johnny Rivers, and the Byrds.
John Barbata, RIP.
Enjoy… until next week.
Nice post Tom. I did not realize until literally last night that he played for Starship. One of the countless musicians who cross our paths in multiple ways.