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BARRY RICHARDS: rock, soul, and some dude eating lightbulbs

pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
edited March 2011 in Strut Central
Barry Richards was a guy in the DC area who hosted local TV dance party shows for decades. Check out this montage, you might see some of your fave rock & soul stars from the 60s, 70s and even 80s. But if you wanna cut to the chase, it's all about the guy eating lightbulbs like they was cheeseburgers at 4:50.

Anybody from the area have any info about this Barry Richards character? This is intriguing me to no end.



  Comments

  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    I remember. I think he had a radio show on WHMS (Heart of Montgomery County in Gaithesburg).
    Considered him a fake hippy who shouted, instead of talking in the mellow tones of the FM djs.

    I do remember seeing a Doors music vid on his tv show, either LMF or Break On Through. I think the show was on a UHF channel, which was kind of like community access cable.

    Id like to see full clips of some of those guests.
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    LaserWolf said:

    Considered him a fake hippy who shouted, instead of talking in the mellow tones of the FM djs.

    I think his shouting a good thing...

    There are some more video montages of his show online, including appearances from Fats Domino and Muddy Waters. From the looks of things, at some point he shifted his focus from "progressive FM" rock to black music.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    Today, the shouting might be a good thing, I agree, but when I was 15...
  • DCarfagnaDCarfagna 983 Posts
    james said:
    It's skeevy and actually kinda awesome.
    Also, how wasted is Dr. Hook (2:35) in that Youtube clip? Jesus.
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    DCarfagna said:
    james said:
    It's skeevy and actually kinda awesome.
    Also, how wasted is Dr. Hook (2:35) in that Youtube clip? Jesus.

    Barry seemed like he was a heartbeat away from getting wasted with them...
  • jamesjames chicago 1,863 Posts
    There's a Barry Richards with a 45 on Cream. It's skeevy and hard to listen to, so I'm assuming it's this same guy.

    Also (cover your ears, pickwick), it's got a fairly gargantuan break on the intro.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    Edit:
    Do you think his stage name is taken from the Richard Barry?
    Or it's his real name and just a coincidence?
  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    "Barry Richards" sounds like a fairly common name. If it's not the DC TV host, a totally unrelated B.R. wouldn't surprise me.
  • jamesjames chicago 1,863 Posts
    I dug out my copy of the record last night, and I'm pretty sure it's not the same dude after all. Internets research reveals that it is chronologically possible but circumstantially unlikey, as the Barry Richards of this thread was a radio-centric dude in DC/Maryland, and the Barry Richards of record was apparently a crooning, LA-based Boyce-Hart exponent around the same time.

    And having re-listened to it just on the strength, I think "actually kinda awesome" is pretty fucking generous. That first verse is mucially interesting and lyrically/creepily compelling, but the chorus and everything thereafter is overwrought and just horse-smackingly bad. Still a great break, though.

    I found that 45 in a box between a couple of records I had no recollection of, so I re-listened to all three, and they turned out to be 1) "Everybody's Gone Into April" on Poison Ring by (ahem) The Bone, the cool-sounding title/artist/label trifecta of which cannot redeem the fake Donovan moves therein, 2) that T.L. Barrett jernt where he sings the Lord's Prayer inna doo-doo modern-soul fashion, and 3) this Barry Richards turd.

    Man, talk about a shit sandwich. Gas face to my man DCarfagna for putting me through all that.
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