Barrence Whitfield

Barrence Whitfield
Birth name Barry White
Born (1955-06-13) June 13, 1955
Jacksonville, Florida, US
Genres R&B, soul, gospel
Occupation(s) Musician, bandleader
Instruments Vocalist
Years active 1970s-present
Labels Rounder, New Rose Records, Munster Records, Bloodshot Records, others
Associated acts
Website Barrence Whitfield official site

Barrence Whitfield (born Barry White, June 13, 1955) is an American soul and R&B vocalist, best known as the frontman for Barrence Whitfield & the Savages.

White was born in Jacksonville, Florida. When he was a child, his family moved to East Orange, New Jersey, where he began singing in a gospel choir. While attending West Side High School he sang and played drums in rock, prog-rock, and funk bands.

1970s—1980s

In 1977 White enrolled at Boston University to study journalism. While in school, he worked in a record shop, where his singing was heard by musician Peter Greenberg of The Lyres. White adopted the stage name Barrence Whitfield to avoid being mistaken for superstar Barry White and began performing with Greenberg and former members of the Lyres as Barrence Whitfield & the Savages.[1][2]

The band garnered a strong reputation for explosive stage performances, described as "raucous and rough, in high gear from the moment they hit the stage."[2] Whitfield himself was described as "a soul screamer in the spirit of Little Richard, Wilson Pickett, Solomon Burke, and early Don Covay."[2] In 1984, the band released their self-titled debut album, mostly comprising cover versions of obscure soul and R&B songs. It received good critical reviews. The following year, they released a second album, Dig Yourself, on Rounder Records. Their music was heard by English radio DJ Andy Kershaw, who taped a Boston performance for airplay in Britain, and brought them to the UK for a tour.[1][2][3]

Whitfield released a third album, Call of the Wild, in the UK in 1987, featuring a new band line-up; an expanded version, retitled Ow! Ow! Ow! was later issued in the US. He toured widely in Europe, and won supporting slots on US tours with such artists as Bo Diddley, Tina Turner, George Thorogood, Robert Cray, and Solomon Burke. Back home Whitfield earned seven Boston Music Awards.[1] A live album, Live Emulsified, recorded in 1987–88, was followed by the album Let's Lose It, produced by Jim Dickinson and issued in France.[4]

1990s—present

In the 1990s, Whitfield contributed tracks to Merle Haggard and Don Covay tribute albums, and recorded two albums with country music singer-songwriter Tom Russell. The album Ritual of the Savages was released in 1995. In 1997, he began working with a New Hampshire-based jump blues and rockabilly octet, The Movers.[3] As well as continuing to perform in the UK and Europe, Whitfield has also contributed to film scores, including the 2007 film, Honeydripper.[1]

In December 2010, Whitfield, Peter Greenberg (DMZ, Lyres, Customs), and Phil Lenker (Lyres) were joined by Andy Jody (Gazelles!, Pearlene, Oxford Cotton, Long Gones) and saxophonist Tom Quartulli to perform two live shows and record a new Barrence Whitfield and The Savages record. That album, Savage Kings, was released on Spanish Label Munster Records and in the US on Shake it Records. In 2013 Whitfield signed with Bloodshot Records, on which he issued Dig Thy Savage Soul in September 2013. Whitfield again toured Europe, including an appearance on the BBC's Jools Holland Show. A followup, Under the Savage Sky, was recorded in January 2015 at UltraSuede studios and released in August of that year; Whitfield described the album as "giving the kids a musical karate chop to the head." [5] A third album for Bloodshot, Soul Flowers of Titan, was issued in 2018.

Discography

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Biography at BarrenceWhitfield.com
  2. 1 2 3 4 Biography by John Dougan at AllMusic
  3. 1 2 Barrence Whitfield at Black Cat Rockabilly
  4. ↑ Article in Trouser Press
  5. ↑ from an interview on Americana Music Show #262, published September 1, 2015.
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