Barrabás
Encyclopedia
Barrabás are a Spanish
musical group, most successful in the 1970s and 1980s, when they were led by drummer
Fernando Arbex
. The group's musical style was initially Latin rock
with jazz
and funk
influences, and later developed into a more disco
-orientated sound.
ist and vocalist
Ignacio "Iñaki" Egaña
were joined by several other musicians in preparation for the recording of their debut album Wild Safari
released later that year. These were Filipino
guitar
ist brothers Ricky and Miguel Morales; Portuguese
keyboard
player Juan Vidal and Cuba
n percussionist
, saxophone
and flute
player Ernesto "Tito" Duarte.
Wild Safari spawned the hit singles "Woman" and "Wild Safari" which were successful in various countries across Europe and the Americas, including the USA and Canada.
Egaña left the group in 1973 after his involvement with drugs
was made public, and Arbex decided to further reduce his own involvement as a musician, hiring two new members, José Luis Tejada and José María Moll, as vocalist and drummer respectively. Moll had played live with Barrabás from the beginning, with Arbex only playing on Wild Safari. This new line-up recorded two albums, Power
in 1973 and ¡Soltad a Barrabás!
in 1974. Moll then left the band after disagreements with the other members, and was replaced by Daniel Louis. With the popularity of disco in the mid-1970s, Barrabás moved in that direction and produced a number of minor hits. They disbanded in 1978, and Arbex moved fully towards writing and producing music for other artists.
The group reformed in 1980 with a new line-up. The Morales brothers, Vidal and Louis were replaced by the returning Moll, Costa Rica
n guitarist "Koky" Maning, bassist "Susy" Gordaliza and keyboard player Armando Pelayo. This line-up recorded two albums before being dropped by their record label, RCA
, and subsequently Tejada, Maning, Gordaliza and Pelayo all left. Miguel Morales and Iñaki Egaña then returned for the recording of the 1983 album Forbidden for CBS
.
Barrabás continued on a smaller scale afterwards under the leadership of Moll, still accompanied by Egaña and Miguel Morales, with Duarte and other musicians helping out both live and in the studio. A number of albums were recorded in the 1990s, consisting of re-recordings of songs from the 1970s and 1980s.
Barrabás founder Fernando Arbex, and multi-instrumentalist Tito Duarte, both died in 2003.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
musical group, most successful in the 1970s and 1980s, when they were led by drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
Fernando Arbex
Fernando Arbex
José Fernando Arbex Miró was an influential Spanish musician and songwriter from Madrid, who enjoyed success both with his own groups and also with other artists....
. The group's musical style was initially Latin rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
with jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
influences, and later developed into a more disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
-orientated sound.
History
Arbex formed Barrabás in 1971 when his previous band, Alacran, split. He and Alacran's bass guitarBass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
ist and vocalist
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
Ignacio "Iñaki" Egaña
Iñaki Egaña
Ignacio "Iñaki" Egaña Azpeitia is a Spanish musician and songwriter, active since the late 1960s in various rock and blues groups and as a solo artist...
were joined by several other musicians in preparation for the recording of their debut album Wild Safari
Wild Safari
Wild Safari is a 1971 album by the Spanish group Barrabás, released outside Spain in January 1972. The album was released in some countries under the simple title "Barrabás", with a different sleeve design...
released later that year. These were Filipino
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist brothers Ricky and Miguel Morales; Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
keyboard
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
player Juan Vidal and Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n percussionist
Percussion instrument
A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
and flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
player Ernesto "Tito" Duarte.
Wild Safari spawned the hit singles "Woman" and "Wild Safari" which were successful in various countries across Europe and the Americas, including the USA and Canada.
Egaña left the group in 1973 after his involvement with drugs
DRUGS
Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows are an American post-hardcore band formed in 2010. They released their debut self-titled album on February 22, 2011.- Formation :...
was made public, and Arbex decided to further reduce his own involvement as a musician, hiring two new members, José Luis Tejada and José María Moll, as vocalist and drummer respectively. Moll had played live with Barrabás from the beginning, with Arbex only playing on Wild Safari. This new line-up recorded two albums, Power
Power (Barrabás album)
Power is a 1973 album by the Spanish group Barrabás. It was the first album to feature new vocalist José Luís Tejada, and drummer José María Moll, who had previously only played with the band in concerts. Tejada had replaced original singer and bassist Iñaki Egaña on vocals, with Miguel Morales...
in 1973 and ¡Soltad a Barrabás!
¡Soltad a Barrabás!
¡Soltad a Barrabás! is the third album by the Spanish group Barrabás, released in 1974. The album was originally released as Release Barrabás or Hi-Jack in some other countries, but the modern CD release retains the Spanish title...
in 1974. Moll then left the band after disagreements with the other members, and was replaced by Daniel Louis. With the popularity of disco in the mid-1970s, Barrabás moved in that direction and produced a number of minor hits. They disbanded in 1978, and Arbex moved fully towards writing and producing music for other artists.
The group reformed in 1980 with a new line-up. The Morales brothers, Vidal and Louis were replaced by the returning Moll, Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
n guitarist "Koky" Maning, bassist "Susy" Gordaliza and keyboard player Armando Pelayo. This line-up recorded two albums before being dropped by their record label, RCA
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
, and subsequently Tejada, Maning, Gordaliza and Pelayo all left. Miguel Morales and Iñaki Egaña then returned for the recording of the 1983 album Forbidden for CBS
CBS Records
CBS Records is a record label founded by CBS Corporation in 2006 to take advantage of music from its entertainment properties owned by CBS Television Studios. The initial label roster consisted of only three artists; rock band Señor Happy and singer/songwriters Will Dailey and P.J...
.
Barrabás continued on a smaller scale afterwards under the leadership of Moll, still accompanied by Egaña and Miguel Morales, with Duarte and other musicians helping out both live and in the studio. A number of albums were recorded in the 1990s, consisting of re-recordings of songs from the 1970s and 1980s.
Barrabás founder Fernando Arbex, and multi-instrumentalist Tito Duarte, both died in 2003.
Personnel
- Fernando ArbexFernando ArbexJosé Fernando Arbex Miró was an influential Spanish musician and songwriter from Madrid, who enjoyed success both with his own groups and also with other artists....
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(1971–72), production - Iñaki EgañaIñaki EgañaIgnacio "Iñaki" Egaña Azpeitia is a Spanish musician and songwriter, active since the late 1960s in various rock and blues groups and as a solo artist...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocals (1971–72, 1983–) - Ernesto "Tito" Duarte – saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, drums, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
(1971–2003) - Ricky Morales – lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
, vocals (1971–78) - Miguel Morales – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, bass guitar, vocals (1971–78, 1983–) - Juan Vidal – keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, vocals (1971–78) - José Luis Tejada – vocals (1972–83)
- José María Moll – drums (1972–74, 1980–)
- Daniel Louis – drums (1974–78)
- Armando Pelayo – keyboards (1980–83)
- Jorge Eduardo "Koky" Maning – guitar, vocals (1980–83)
- Jesús "Susi" Gordaliza – bass guitar, vocals (1980–83)
Album discography
- Wild SafariWild SafariWild Safari is a 1971 album by the Spanish group Barrabás, released outside Spain in January 1972. The album was released in some countries under the simple title "Barrabás", with a different sleeve design...
– 1971 (AKA Barrabás) - PowerPower (Barrabás album)Power is a 1973 album by the Spanish group Barrabás. It was the first album to feature new vocalist José Luís Tejada, and drummer José María Moll, who had previously only played with the band in concerts. Tejada had replaced original singer and bassist Iñaki Egaña on vocals, with Miguel Morales...
– 1973 - ¡Soltad a Barrabás!¡Soltad a Barrabás!¡Soltad a Barrabás! is the third album by the Spanish group Barrabás, released in 1974. The album was originally released as Release Barrabás or Hi-Jack in some other countries, but the modern CD release retains the Spanish title...
– 1974 (AKA Release Barrabás or Hi-Jack) - Heart of the CityHeart of the City (album)Heart of the City is the fourth album by the Spanish group Barrabás, released in 1975. The album charted at #149 on the Billboard 200 in the USA, and was later re-released on CD in Spain as Check Mate....
– 1975 (AKA Check Mate) - Watch OutWatch Out (Barrabás album)Watch Out is the fifth album by the Spanish group Barrabás, released in 1975. The album was later re-released on CD in Spain as Desperately....
– 1975 (AKA Desperately) - SwingerSwinger (album)Swinger is the sixth album by the Spanish group Barrabás, released in 1976. It was the last album before the group's four-year hiatus, and the last to feature several band members including Ricky Morales, Juan Vidal and Daniel Louis. Due to the album title being absent from the cover, it is...
– 1976 (AKA Barrabás or Watch-Out) - Piel de BarrabásPiel de BarrabásPiel de Barrabás is a 1981 music album by the Spanish group Barrabás. It was the band's seventh album and the first after the band's four-year break...
– 1981 - Bestial – 1982
- Forbidden – 1983
- Barrabás Power – Abraxa – 1994
- Grandes Éxitos – 1997
- Vive – 1999
External links
- [ Barrabás at Allmusic]
- Discogrpahy at Spanishprogressiverock.blogpsot.com
- Official website (SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
)