Adrian Barber

English musician (1938–2020)

Adrian Barber (13 November 1938 – 8 August 2020)^[1] was an English musician and producer most noted for recording the Beatles Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962,^[2]^[3] producing the Allman Brothers Band's self-titled debut album,^[4] along with the Velvet Underground's album Loaded.

Musician and electronics

Barber was the lead guitarist in Liverpool's quartet "Cass and the Casanovas" (led by Brian "Cass" Cassar) and its subsequent Big Three.^[5]^[6] Also an electronic wizard, he was responsible for upgrading the group amps (called "coffins") but also upgrading other Liverpudlian's gear. This included Paul McCartney's quad amp.^[7]^[8] He left the Big Three in mid-1962, when the band planned to be a quartet.

Sound stage manager

In 1962, due to his knowledge in the electronic field, Barber was hired by Horst Fascher to improve the Star-Club's Sound system. In late December 1962, he recorded bands performing and some of his tapes were released as Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962.

Producer and sound engineer

In the late 1960s, Barber became a recording engineer/producer for Atlantic Records, for instance on

1969 Cream - Goodbye^[9]
1969 The Allman Brothers Band^[9]^[10]
1967 Aretha Franklin - I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You^[4]
1968 Aretha Franklin - Aretha Now^[4]
1969 Velvet Underground - Loaded (also drumming on 2 tracks)
1969 The Rascals - Freedom Suite
1969 The Rascals - See
1968 Buffalo Springfield - Last Time Around^[4]
1969 Bee Gees - Odessa^[4]
1969 Aretha Franklin - Lady Soul^[4]
1971 Aretha Franklin - Aretha's Greatest Hits^[4]
1973 Aerosmith - Aerosmith^[4]

Death

He died from COVID-19, spending the rest of his life on the island of Hawaii.^[1]

References

Everett, Walter (2001). The Beatles as musicians: the Quarry Men through Rubber soul. Oxford University Press US. ISBN 978-0-19-514105-4. Retrieved 3 May 2010.

^ ^a ^b Ellis, Graham (17 October 2020). "The Beatles first sound engineer". Renegades Escapades. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
^ Everett, p. 137
^ Ingham, Chris (2003). The rough guide to the Beatles. Rough Guides. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-84353-140-1. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "Billboard Newspaper" (PDF). World Radio History. 11 February 1978. p. 18. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
^ Everett, p. 167
^ Curley, Mallory (2005), Beatle Pete, Time Traveller (Randy Press)
^ Everett, p. 378
^ Babiuk, Andy, Beatles Gear
^ ^a ^b Power, Martin (1997). The complete guide to the music of Aerosmith. Omnibus Press. pp. 1–2. ISBN 978-0-7119-5598-1. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
^ Graham, Sam (18 December 1999). "Tom Dowd: A Producer's Impressions". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 51. p. 24. Retrieved 3 May 2010.