Richard Barrett (musician)

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Richard Barrett (* 14. July 1933 in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , USA ; † 3. August 2006 , ibid; also known as Ritchie Barrett ) was an American rhythm-and-blues - producer , songwriter and conductor . He was a major figure in the early years of rock 'n' roll , one of the first successful independent black record producers, and the pioneer of Broadway black producers.

Career as a singer and songwriter

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Barrett began singing in the R&B group Angels in the early 1950s . In addition to his charismatic appearance as a singer with an elegant voice, he was a well-trained dancer and choreographer and early on revealed his talent for imaginative arrangements of songs. In 1952 or 1953 Barrett went to New York , where he made his living as a day laborer, always looking for a paid performance as a musician. When he heard the quartet The Dreamers sing, he offered them the song Summer's Love in case he was allowed to join the band. The musicians accepted. After a quick renaming to The Valentines , the quintet quickly became known. Raoul Cita of the Harptones brought her together with Monte Bruce , who wanted to create the Bruce Records label . A demo tape of Summer's Love remained his only producer performance, but this was by legendary Harlem - DJ Willie Bryant played on the radio. In November 1954 the Valentines recorded a new version of Summer's Love as a single on Old Town Records in Harlem. The B-side Tonight Kathleen increased the popularity of Valentine . At George Goldner's Rama Records , the group released Lily Maebelle in 1955 , which became a regional hit thanks to DJ Alan Freed - and made the Valentines stars in Harlem. At the same time, Barrett worked his way up at Rama (later Gee Records ) from a girl-for-all to a veritable producer and talent scout . He discovered Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers , who a little later recorded the rock'n'roll classic Why Do Fools Fall in Love . In 1956 Barrett and the Valentines had another hit with Woo Woo Train , but Barrett's dwindling interest in an active career as a musician ended the project after two more, less successful releases.

Career as a producer

Barrett devoted himself entirely to his production activities and his new protégés The Cleftones , whose vocal arrangements and stage choreography he was responsible for. In 1957 Barrett discovered the New York quintet The Chantels , which is considered the first girl group in rock'n'roll history. He became her manager and producer. Their second release, Maybe , was a million-dollar hit and another rock and roll classic. In the same year Barrett produced and arranged The Channels' debut single . He made another huge discovery with Little Anthony & the Imperials , now under contract with Roulette Records , a successor to Rama , Gee , End and Gone Records , which was run by Goldner's partner Morris Levy . In 1960 Barrett founded his own label: Princeton Records , whose stars became The Veneers . Barrett also produced early recordings for the Isley Brothers and Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, and met Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff before any of them became known. After returning to Philadelphia in 1963, he produced The Three Degrees , with which he celebrated a number of hits in the 1970s, including the number 1 single TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia) ( Phillysound ) in 1974.

Web links

• Richard Barrett at Allmusic (English)
• Richard Barrett at Discogs (English)