#john barbata

“Drummer Extraordinaire” John Barbata Dies at 79

- Musician played with the Turtles, CSNY and Jefferson Airplane/Starship

Drummer John Barbata, whose career took him from the Turtles to Jefferson Starship, has died at 79.

Best Classic Bands first reported Barbata’s May 8 death without providing the cause; the surviving members of Jefferson Airplane confirmed it on social media.

“Rest in peace, John Barbata,” the Airplane wrote, calling the drummer “legendary” and an “exceptional talent.”

Barbata kept time for the Turtles from 1966-’69 before joining Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in time to appear on 4 Way Street. When CSNY went on hiatus, Barbata continued working with the principals on their respective solo albums.

At the suggestion of David Crosby, Barbata joined the final Airplane lineup, appearing on two LPs, and was subsequently a co-founding member of Jefferson Starship, where he remained until a 1978 car crash ended his tenure.

“Goodbye, John, old friend and …drummer extraordinaire,” Jefferson Starship co-founder Pete Sears said. “See you down the line a ways.”

Adiós al baterista John Barbata, miembro de The Turtles, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jefferson Airplane y Jefferson Starship.

En 1966, Barbata audicionó para las Turtles por sugerencia de Gene Clark de los Byrds, y se unió a tiempo para grabar su nº 1 "Happy Together" y posteriormente "She'd Rather Be With Me", "You Showed Me", "Elenore" y "She's My Girl". Estuvo con ellos hasta 1969, cuando fue reclutado por CSN&Y para reemplazar a Dallas Taylor. Se puede escuchar a Barbata en "4 Way Street" y en proyectos en solitario de sus componentes, como "Time Fades Away" de Neil Young y "Songs for Beginners" de Graham Nash.

John Barbata (born April 1, 1945) is an American drummer who was active especially in pop and rock bands in the 1960s and 1970s, both as a band member and as a session drummer. Barbata has served as the drummer for The Turtles, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jefferson Airplane (for its final album and tour only), and Jefferson Starship (from 1974 to 1978). Barbata claims to have played on over 60 albums in an uncredited capacity.[1]

In spring 1966, The Turtles were looking for a new drummer and Gene Clark of the Byrds recommended Barbata. After an audition with Howard Kaylan, Mark Volman, and Al Nichol, Barbata had the gig. The first song Barbata recorded with the Turtles was "Happy Together" and on March 25, 1967, "Happy Together" went to No. 1 on the charts and stayed there for three weeks. One of his trademarks was to incorporate stick twirling into his performances, a technique also used by Dino Danelli of The Rascals and Carmine Appice of Vanilla Fudge.

In 1972, while CSNY were on an extended break, David Crosby introduced Barbata to the band Jefferson Airplane, who were looking for a new drummer after their previous one, Joey Covington, quit to do a solo album.[4] Soon after, Barbata joined Jefferson Airplane and went on to record the album Long John Silver (1972) and the live album Thirty Seconds Over Winterland (1973).[1]