Barnstorm
Encyclopedia
Barnstorm is the first album
by Joe Walsh
following his departure from the James Gang
, released in 1972 (see 1972 in music
). The core band on this album – Walsh, bassist Kenny Passarelli and drummer/multi-instrumentalist Joe Vitale
– was also named Barnstorm
.
and Crosby, Stills, and Nash.
Taking a cue from The Who
's Pete Townshend
, Walsh utilized the ARP Odyssey
synthesizer to great effect on such songs as "Mother Says" and "Here We Go." Walsh also experimented with acoustic guitar, slide guitar
, fuzzboxes
and keyboards as well as running his guitar strait into a Leslie 122
to get swirly, organ-like guitar tones. The lone hard rock track on Barnstorm, "Turn To Stone," has become the best known song from the album, since Walsh later re-recorded it for his solo album So What.
At the time of its release, Barnstorm was only moderately successful. For years, the only CD version available was an expensive Japanese import. Nonetheless, the album became a cult classic among Walsh fans. It was recently reissued in the U.S. on CD by Hip-O Select
/Geffen Records
in January 2006.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Joe Walsh
Joe Walsh
Joseph Fidler "Joe" Walsh is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has been a member of three commercially successful bands, the James Gang, Barnstorm, and the Eagles, and has experienced notable success as a solo artist and prolific session musician, especially with B.B...
following his departure from the James Gang
James Gang
The James Gang was a rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1966. Though the band was not a huge commercial success, except in the Northeast Ohio area, the fame garnered by guitarist Joe Walsh has since made the group more notable.- History :...
, released in 1972 (see 1972 in music
1972 in music
-Events:*January 17 – Highway 51 South in Memphis, Tennessee is renamed "Elvis Presley Boulevard"*January 20 – The début of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon at The Dome, Brighton, is halted by technical difficulties,...
). The core band on this album – Walsh, bassist Kenny Passarelli and drummer/multi-instrumentalist Joe Vitale
Joe Vitale (musician)
Joe Vitale is an American musician primarily known as a drummer but also a flautist, keyboardist and singer. He has played with many of the top names in music during a career dating back to the 1970s.-Biography:...
– was also named Barnstorm
Barnstorm (group)
Barnstorm was the group created by Joe Walsh after he left the James Gang. The original members of the group were Walsh , Joe Vitale and Kenny Passarelli ; all of the members contributed vocals and songs, although Walsh was the principal singer and songwriter...
.
History
With this album, Walsh and Barnstorm moved away from the hard rock sound of the James Gang and explored a more folk-based, acoustic sound, influenced by such artists as James TaylorJames Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
and Crosby, Stills, and Nash.
Taking a cue from The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
's Pete Townshend
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
, Walsh utilized the ARP Odyssey
ARP Odyssey
The ARP Odyssey was an analog synthesizer introduced in 1972. Responding to pressure from Moog Music to create a portable, affordable "performance" synthesizer, ARP scaled down its popular 2600 synthesizer and created the Odyssey, which became the best-selling synthesizer they made.The Odyssey is...
synthesizer to great effect on such songs as "Mother Says" and "Here We Go." Walsh also experimented with acoustic guitar, slide guitar
Slide guitar
Slide guitar or bottleneck guitar is a particular method or technique for playing the guitar. The term slide refers to the motion of the slide against the strings, while bottleneck refers to the original material of choice for such slides: the necks of glass bottles...
, fuzzboxes
Fuzzbox
A fuzzbox is a device for deliberately introducing distortion in music.Fuzzbox may also refer to:* We've Got a Fuzzbox and We're Gonna Use It or Fuzzbox, a 1980s English pop-punk quartet* FuzzBox, a video-game developer that developed Cyber Org...
and keyboards as well as running his guitar strait into a Leslie 122
Leslie speaker
The Leslie speaker is a specially constructed amplifier/loudspeaker used to create special audio effects using the Doppler effect. Named after its inventor, Donald Leslie, it is particularly associated with the Hammond organ but is used with a variety of instruments as well as vocals. The...
to get swirly, organ-like guitar tones. The lone hard rock track on Barnstorm, "Turn To Stone," has become the best known song from the album, since Walsh later re-recorded it for his solo album So What.
At the time of its release, Barnstorm was only moderately successful. For years, the only CD version available was an expensive Japanese import. Nonetheless, the album became a cult classic among Walsh fans. It was recently reissued in the U.S. on CD by Hip-O Select
Hip-O Records
Hip-O Records is a record label, currently part of Universal Music Group, which specializes in reissues and compilations. Their Hip-O Select label is currently in the midst of releasing the Complete Motown Singles, a series of fourteen box sets which include both sides of every 45 from Motown...
/Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
in January 2006.
Reception
Writing for Allmusic, critic Thom Jurek called the track "Birdcall Morning" a masterpiece and one of the greatest rock & roll love song of the early 70's. In his review, he wrote of the album "While it's true that Walsh established himself as a late-'60s/early-'70s guitar hero on the Gang's more boogie-oriented rock numbers, it's Walsh's love of lushly textured production and spacy, open-ended songs featuring both acoustic and electric guitars that is showcased here on this wildly adventurous and forgotten unqualified masterpiece... Walsh tips the scales one more time back to the mysterious in the acoustic guitar and harmonica moment "Comin' Down." It's another love song, which evokes the notion of the past as a way of creating a hopeful present. And it just whispers to a close, leaving the listener literally stunned at what has just transpired in the space of 35 minutes."Track listing
All songs by Joe Walsh unless otherwise noted.- "Here We Go" – 4:58
- "Midnight Visitor" – 3:13
- "One and One" – 1:15
- "Giant Bohemoth" (Joe Vitale, Walsh) – 4:19
- "Mother Says" (Kenny Passarelli, Vitale, Walsh) – 6:14
- "Birdcall Morning" – 3:42
- "Home" – 2:53
- "I'll Tell the World"* (Alan Gordon, Allan Jacob) – 3:54
- "Turn to Stone" (Terry Trebandt, Walsh) – 5:16
- "Comin' Down" – 1:54
- "I'll Tell the World" is titled "I'll Tell the World About You" on the ABC Dunhill Label fixed to the album.
Personnel
- Joe WalshJoe WalshJoseph Fidler "Joe" Walsh is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has been a member of three commercially successful bands, the James Gang, Barnstorm, and the Eagles, and has experienced notable success as a solo artist and prolific session musician, especially with B.B...
: Lead guitars, keyboards, piano, synthesizer, telegraph key, vocals. - Kenny Passarelli: Bass guitar, guitarrone, vocals.
- Joe VitaleJoe Vitale (musician)Joe Vitale is an American musician primarily known as a drummer but also a flautist, keyboardist and singer. He has played with many of the top names in music during a career dating back to the 1970s.-Biography:...
: Drums, percussion, keyboards, electric piano, flute, vocals. - Paul HarrisPaul Harris (musician)Paul Harris is a keyboards player and session musician.Harris appears on several albums of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s by leading artists such as Stephen Stills, B. B. King, Judy Collins, Al Kooper, ABBA, Eric Andersen, Rick Derringer, Nick Drake, John Sebastian, Joe Walsh, Seals & Crofts and Dan...
: Piano, vocals. - Al PerkinsAl PerkinsAl Perkins is a Texas-born American guitarist. The Gibson guitar company called Perkins "the world's most influential Dobro player", and even began producing an "Al Perkins Signature" Dobro in 2001 - designed and autographed by Perkins....
: Steel guitar. - Chuck RaineyChuck RaineyChuck Rainey, is an American bass guitar session musician, known for playing with many well-known American musicians and acts, including Donald Byrd, Steely Dan, Quincy Jones, and Aretha Franklin.-Biography:Rainey's youthful pursuits included violin, piano and trumpet...
: Bass guitar. - Bill SzymczykBill SzymczykBill Szymczyk is an American music producer and technical engineer best known for working with rock and blues musicians, most notably the Eagles in the 1970s. He produced many top albums and singles of the 1970s, though he retired from the music business by 1990...
: Backing vocals.
Production
- Producer: Bill SzymczykBill SzymczykBill Szymczyk is an American music producer and technical engineer best known for working with rock and blues musicians, most notably the Eagles in the 1970s. He produced many top albums and singles of the 1970s, though he retired from the music business by 1990...
, Joe WalshJoe WalshJoseph Fidler "Joe" Walsh is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has been a member of three commercially successful bands, the James Gang, Barnstorm, and the Eagles, and has experienced notable success as a solo artist and prolific session musician, especially with B.B... - Engineer: Bill SzymczykBill SzymczykBill Szymczyk is an American music producer and technical engineer best known for working with rock and blues musicians, most notably the Eagles in the 1970s. He produced many top albums and singles of the 1970s, though he retired from the music business by 1990...
, Joe WalshJoe WalshJoseph Fidler "Joe" Walsh is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has been a member of three commercially successful bands, the James Gang, Barnstorm, and the Eagles, and has experienced notable success as a solo artist and prolific session musician, especially with B.B...
Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Pop Albums | 79 |