Joe Barney and Friends
Holly GoNightly
April 24, 2008
The typical scene at The Bitter End: a bubbling mass of pastel polos, edged against girls in flip flops and flipped hair, fresh scrubbed college kids pretending to be interested in whatever band is on stage, forcing an occasional head-bop or toe-tap between swigs of Bud Light. Last night, however, was not typical. Transformed in part by the likes of Lydia Hearst, Richie Rich, Traver Rains, and Leven Rambin, The Bitter End housed a crowd eager to cheer on musician Joe Barney.
“It’s funny. As long as I’ve known Joe, he’s never really talked about being a musician,” says one of Barney’s old friends. “I think after he realized he was actually good at this, he gave us a song or two to listen to, and now he’s here.” Here, being a venue where greats like Joni Mitchell and Etta James got their start, and with a little help from his friends, Barney is off to a respectable start himself.
Conversations were initiated by fans inquiring if I went to Wilton, the high school both Barney and Hearst attended. Once that had been ruled out, the next inquiry was whether or not I attended Duke University, Barney’s alma mater. Not that either? Good friends, indeed, the majority of the crowd was made up of those he had grown up with. “It’s like MySpace in action,” another friend says of this refreshing show of support, complete with T-shirts made by Izzy “Golden Jew” Gold, BlackBook magazines strewn about, a record exec or two floating amid the throngs, and an encouraging girlfriend (Hearst) who had made much of this possible.
Although Hearst had brought many of these people together, it seemed more of a nicety than a necessity. Barney carries himself with the stage presence of an experienced singer-songwriter, and with a sound that is one part pop, two parts Dierks Bentley country (with the same floppy good looks), his allure as an artist is enough to build his own media hoopla. Download ”Second Thoughts,” and the next time you catch wind of a Joe Barney show, grab a friend and go. You may not have attended Wilton or Duke, but his flock of fans will make you feel right at home.
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