Dusty Barber. Trop Rocker of the Month. By Linda Hebert

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2 Trop Rocker of the Month Dusty Barber By Linda Hebert This month, PHlockers Magazine had the pleasure of riding along (virtually) with Dusty Barber as he traveled I-40 heading toward the mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. This interviewer was not at all surprised at his ability to stay focused on the road and his brother in the car in front of him while juggling my questions through the speaker phone and the occasional interruption from his on-board navigation system. Who says men can t multitask?? By the end of our talk, I was pretty convinced that there are very few bridges that this artist has not probably already crossed; and possibly the only thing he has not yet figured out how to do, is be in two places at one time!! Q. So Dusty, is this NC destination a holiday tradition in the Barber family? A. No, the usual tradition is really just to be home for Christmas to be with family. When you tour all year and then November rolls around, you re usually grateful for things to start winding down and to be able to stay in one place for a little while. But my mom, Wendy Barber always wanted to go to tour the Biltmore Estate. And while we did make some trips to Tennessee and some other bucket list items for her, we did not make that one happen before we lost her. So this year, my brother and I are going in her honor. Q. Do you have a favorite Christmas Carol? A. This year it s Mary Did You Know? As a matter of fact, I ll be playing and posting a video of that one on my Facebook pg. to share with you all soon. Q. So what led you into music? A. I got my first guitar at the age of eight, from my father, Sam Barber who was also a guitarist. I started participating in talent shows around my hometown of Boyd, Texas around the age of thirteen/fourteen and then started playing professionally around the age of fifteen/sixteen. And it grew from there. I ve been fortunate to be able to spend my life doing what I enjoy. Continued on page 44 43

3 Dusty Barber Continued from page 43 Q. And how did the opportunity to play with Al Green happen for you? A. I got the Al Green gig back in December of I got a call from a friend of mine, Jimmy Jam Elps, who was the tour manager/guitar player/personal assistant for Al Green. He called and asked if I d like to play for him and I said I d love to. We went over the information of what the touring schedule would involve and then I flew up to Memphis and did one rehearsal with the band. And the next thing I knew, we Dusty Barber and the legendary Al Green on tour in Louisiana. were on tour all over the world, which I am still fortunate to be doing today! Q. Can you share some of the highlights of a day in the life of a rock star? A. Well I d like to say thank you to Al Green because through him, I ve been able to play with so many talented artists in so many special places. In 2012 we did the BB King Blues Tour, which was fifteen shows with Buddy Guy, Al Green and BB King. The last show of that tour ended at Red Rocks Canyon in Colorado. In my opinion, there s not much of a better place in the world to play than Red Rocks Canyon Amphitheatre. It s a really, really cool venue. The last time that I saw BB King was at Red Rocks. As I said, Al Green has toured all over the world---new Zealand, throughout Europe, (where Michael McDonald opened up for us!), The Sydney Domain Festival (with well over 100,000 people in attendance) in Australia, The New Orleans Jazz Festival, sold out show (83,000) at the Superdome with Lionel Richie in New Orleans, Carnegie Hall, The Beacon Theatre in New York, The Jay Leno Show; and it s fun things like these and so many others that really stand out when you look back on where you ve been and what you ve done. Oh and when you asked about what it's like 44

4 to be a rock star, I'm definitely no Rock star, just a guitarist who occasionally ends up at the right place and time for some nice experiences! Q. What are you most proud of? A. Well we once had the honor of having Prince be our executive producer for an album that my brother, Shane Barber (a drummer and a producer, the one joining us on our road trip) and I contributed songs to. It was a collaboration with an artist named Jacob Armen, a drummer that Prince found and signed to his record label. The album s called Drum Fever and it was released in 1994 in Scandinavia and Germany on NPG/Paisley Park Warner Bros. Records. Q. So what s your history and current involvement with one of our own, The Southern Drawl Band? A. I played some shows with them back in 2012/13 and then wasn t available to continue because of the extensive tour schedule with Al Green. But I got back with them recently after David Crowe (guitarist), who was a very good friend of mine, passed away. I joined them this past November for the 2016 MOTM Key West shows. Continued on page 46 Dusty Barber and B. B. King on tour together backstage at the Red Rocks Amphitheater 45

5 Dusty Barber Continued from page 45 As far as David s sudden passing, we were all in shock. When I expressed my condolences to Mike Nash, he and I spoke immediately about me filling in since it just seems to be the most practical thing to do. I considered David a good friend. We had kept in touch and hung out whenever we could. We were both David Allan Coe alumni (we both played with this artist too), which was kind of our common bond. And now as far as continuing with Southern Drawl, we re still trying to work out any scheduling conflicts because playing together just makes so much sense for both of us. It s just such a wonderful fit. As they say, we fit like a glove. We re trying to work out touring together in As a matter of fact, we ll be bringing in the New Year together at a show in Ft. Myers, FL. I m really looking forward to playing with Mike and all of those guys as much as possible this coming year. Southern Drawl Band at Hurricane Charlie's post MOTM party. Paul Wray, Larry Dunsmore, Mike Nash, John Pa, Sammy Densler (Songwriters Island Radio) J.D. Edge, Steve Hun ngton (Radio Margaritaville), Dusty Barber. 46

6 Q. We phans don t always grasp all that goes on behind the scenes. Can you share how the support of others has made a difference for you? A. Well the great thing about my wife, Alenna is that she understands about life on the road and she s cool with that. One of the best things is how she always supports me even though I m gone so much of the year. Most of the time she welcomes me back with open arms when I come home. We just celebrated our ten year anniversary in September. I d like to thank God for bringing her and so many other blessings into my life. Q. Do you have any New Year s Resolutions? A. In the new year, I d like to just be a little more focused on trying to make this world a better place, and more focused on people and trying to bring a light to the world in every way that I can and in every situation that I can. I don t want to go through an opportunity and overlook something that might have been an important way to help someone somewhere. I think that s why we re all here, to do things for others. And that s what I try to think of everyday. A lot of times it gets so confusing in our lives and in our heads because there s so much going on, especially with iphones constantly in our hands. But if we stop to look up, we might realize that the little old lady really could use someone to open the door for her. It really is the little things that make a difference. Continued on page 48 Dusty with his wife, Alenna Barber 47

7 Dusty Barber Continued from page 47 And when I do need to stay focused on my own responsibilities, at least I am in the fortunate position to still be trying to make a difference because I feel like when I m out playing all over the world, I m bringing joy to people s lives through the music. Being able to bring music to people is a wonderful way for me to make my small contribution. Q. Can you tell us when and how you got to know the Parrot Head scene? A. Around 2007, I was playing with Ocean Waves Band, who played a lot of Parrot Head Club events in the Jacksonville area and also throughout the state. Playing with the Ocean Waves Band (as his band was called back then) also lead to being part of the band that won Jimmy Parish the opportunity to open up for Kenny Chesney. Unfortunately I wasn t available to do that show with them because I was on tour with Al Green. But I still got to play with Kenny when he was the headliner for the Kentucky Derby Hullabaloo concert at Churchill Downs. Al Green was also playing there along with Michael McDonald and the Doobie Brothers, Huey Lewis, and various big name acts. 48

8 But playing at the Parrot Head functions found me realizing that the more of these people that we met, the more great friends I made. Then this lead to opportunities to play Margaritaville in Key West. I d like to thank all of the Parrot Heads and Clubs who have supported me and my endeavors. I d especially like to say thanks to Tom and Michelle Becker for creating TRMA and to all of its members for nominating me for Musician of the Year for the past eight years in a row and The Conch Fritters for duo/trio of the year many times as well. We love you guys! I also want to thank Katy Waugh (the editor and founder of this magazine). I absolutely adore her! If I ever have to send her a text, it s loaded with heart emoji's!! <3 <3 <3 And of course, last but not least, I d like to thank Jimmy Buffett for this amazing genre of music and his phans, who are the best-parrot HEADS ROCK!! Continued on page 50 Dusty Barber, Barry Olsavsky, Mike Devereaux (The Conch Fritters) Pirate Party at Willie T's on Duval St. Key West, FL. MOTM

9 Dusty Barber Continued from page 49 Q. And there s more? A. Yes, currently The Conch Fritters (Barry & Matt Olsavsky) have been able to work around my touring schedule (John Kaminski fills in for me when I m on the road) so when I m not, I have my regular gig with them mostly around St. Augustine, Amelia Island, Vilano Beach and throughout Florida. (See: for more info on their schedule, music and booking availability.) And I m also working on some of my own material. I ve had people request that I produce an album. I m kind of known for my Spanish guitar playing ((in the style of Santana (if we go the electric vein) /Ottmar Liebert/ and anything you can think of with Spanish guitar style!)). The album will have some Latin instrumentals (some of them are already on Jimmy Parrish s album) and some vocals. But near and dear to my heart, it will feature my daughter, Caroline Rink on violin. She is eighteen and quite amazing. Be on the lookout for her! Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top and Dusty Barber both on tour in London, England. 50

10 Right: Barry Olsavsky, Mike Devereaux and Dusty Barber, The Conch Fritters, in Key West Q. So you play more than the guitar? What instruments do you play? A. I do play a few instruments, let me just list them for you...guitar, Ukulele, Bass, Banjo, Dobro, Ocarina, Mandolin, Saxophone, Indian Flute, Piano, Sitar. Percussion, drums. I am also learning to play didgeridoo. Which is funny because on one of the SDB albums they talk about a didgeridoo. Maybe Mike Nash will give me a didgeridoo solo!! LoL! Well Dusty, by the time this article goes live, I will have had the opportunity to see you in person at that Ft. Myers (my hometown area) New Year s Eve show and I m going to hold you to that dedication promise since it s my husband, Hugh and my 22 nd anniversary! We can t think of a better place to be, to ring in the New Year! For all phans looking to catch up w/ Dusty throughout the rest of the year, go to: Below: Harold Marcho, David Allan Coe and Dusty Barber on tour with the David Allan Coe Band at the Iron Horse Saloon in Daytona Beach, FL 51