In 1971, Barrie “Barriemore” Barlow joined Jethro Tull just as the British rock band was heading into one of the most ambitious and successful periods of its career.
More than five decades later, Barlow remains so highly regarded for his work behind the drum kit that one particularly impressive endorsement still stands out: Led Zeppelin’s late drummer John Bonham called him “England’s best rock drummer,” according to Drumhead magazine.
Barlow, who turns 77 on Sept. 10, was born in Birmingham, England, in 1949. He had known future Jethro Tull members Ian Anderson and John Evan since their days playing together in The Blades, but initially went in a different direction before rejoining his former bandmates in Jethro Tull in 1971.
His arrival came at an opportune moment. Jethro Tull had broken through with 1971’s Aqualung, and Barlow’s first full album with the group would be the enormously successful Thick as a Brick in 1972.
Barlow remained with Jethro Tull throughout the 1970s, playing on albums including A Passion Play, War Child, Minstrel in the Gallery, Songs from the Wood, Heavy Horses and Stormwatch.
His unusual, highly technical style earned considerable admiration from fellow musicians.
In the 2007 Drumhead profile, Barlow’s drumming was praised for helping Jethro Tull weave hard rock, blues, folk and progressive music together, particularly on Thick as a Brick, A Passion Play and Heavy Horses. The magazine also highlighted the 1978 live album Bursting Out as evidence that Barlow could reproduce his complicated playing onstage.
Then came the ultimate compliment.
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“So lauded was he that rock’s most deified drum-god, John Bonham, deemed him ‘England’s best rock drummer,’” the magazine reported.
Barlow’s reputation was strong enough that his name was also reportedly among the possibilities considered as Led Zeppelin contemplated whether anyone could replace Bonham following the drummer’s death in 1980. Ultimately, the surviving members decided that Led Zeppelin could not continue without Bonham and disbanded. Barlow later worked separately with both Robert Plant and Jimmy Page.
Years later, Barlow revealed a remarkable connection between himself and Bonham’s son, Jason Bonham.
While Page was working with Jason, Page wanted a particular rhythm played the way he had heard Barlow do it previously. According to Barlow’s recollection in Drumhead, Jason’s response was simple: “Just call Barlow.”
The call came, and Barlow headed to Page’s studio to play. He remembered being both excited and intimidated by the opportunity, ultimately appearing on multiple tracks with the Led Zeppelin guitarist.
Barlow’s post-Tull résumé also included work with Plant, John Miles and Yngwie Malmsteen. But his years with Jethro Tull remain the foundation of his reputation.
In a 1990 Modern Drummer article, Anderson described Barlow as a drummer who thought several bars ahead, which made him a “more intellectual” drummer than most.
“Barrie is not a metronomic drummer, and no offense intended. Instead, he thinks in terms of patterns, and he’ll be thinking ahead quite a few bars when he’s playing — about how he’s going to improvise and embellish or develop a pattern,” said Anderson. “So he’s playing less for the moment and more with a view towards an overall arrangement and a level of detail. He’s a more intellectual sort of drummer, like maybe Bill Bruford was with Yes.”
Barlow himself has always been considerably more self-deprecating about his playing. Looking back on his elaborate Jethro Tull work, he told Modern Drummer that he now advises younger drummers not to play the way he did because his parts were “so busy and over-the-top.”
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