Joey Baron

Joey Baron
Joey Baron
	Joey Baron performing in Munch, Oslo 2023; Photo: Tore Sætre
Background information
Birth name	Bernard Joseph Baron
Born	June 26, 1955 (age 69); Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Genres	Jazz, avant-garde jazz
Occupation	Musician
Instrument	Drums
Years active	1975–present
Labels	JMT, Intuition, ECM, Tzadik, Elektra Nonesuch, CAM Jazz, DIW

Bernard Joseph Baron (born June 26, 1955 in Richmond, Virginia) is an American drummer best-known for working in avant-garde jazz with Bill Frisell and John Zorn.

Music career

Baron, who is of Jewish heritage, was born on June 26, 1955, in Richmond, Virginia. When he was nine, he taught himself how to play the drums. As a teenager, he played in rock bands and dixieland jazz groups and was given his first gig opportunity at the age of 13 when pianist BJ Doyle's regular drummer took ill and she knew he was a keeper after just minutes. After high school, he spent a year at the Berklee College of Music. He moved to Los Angeles in the early 1970s and embarked on a professional career, playing with Carmen McRae and Al Jarreau. He worked as a freelance drummer and session musician with Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, and Hampton Hawes.^[1]

In 1982 he moved to New York City and joined guitarist Bill Frisell, with whom he would play often throughout his career. He also played in groups with Red Rodney, Fred Hersch, Enrico Pieranunzi, and Marc Johnson. Starting in the late 1980s, he became a bigger part of the avant-garde jazz scene when he played regularly at the Knitting Factory, recorded with singer Laurie Anderson, and began a long association with John Zorn. For several years he participated in Zorn's projects Naked City and Masada.^[1]

Baron contributed to David Bowie's Outside (1995). Bowie would later praise Baron, stating: "Metronomes shake in fear, he's so steady."^[2]

Discography

As leader/co-leader

Tongue in Groove (JMT, 1992)
RAIsedpleasuredot (New World, 1993)
Crackshot (Avant, 1995)
Down Home (Intuition, 1997)
We'll Soon Find Out (Intuition, 1999)
Killer Joey (Goo-Head, 2000)
Beyond (Auditorium, 2001)
Venice, Dal Vivo (D'Autres Cordes, 2010)
Just Listen (Relative Pitch, 2013)
Live! (Intakt, 2017) with Irène Schweizer
Now You Hear Me (Intakt, 2018) with Robyn Schulkowsky

As sideman

With John Abercrombie

Cat 'n' Mouse (ECM, 2000)
Class Trip (ECM, 2003)
The Third Quartet (ECM, 2006)
Wait Till You See Her (ECM, 2008)
Within a Song (ECM, 2012)
39 Steps (ECM, 2013)
Up and Coming (ECM, 2017)

With the Toshiko Akiyoshi

Tuttie Flutie (Discomate, 1980)
European Memoirs (Victor, 1982)
Toshiko Akiyoshi Trio (Eastworld, 1983)

With Laurie Anderson

Strange Angels (Warner Bros., 1989)
Bright Red (Warner Bros., 1994)
The Ugly One with the Jewels (Warner Bros., 1995)
Life on a String (Elektra Nonesuch, 2001)

With Tim Berne

Miniature (JMT, 1988)
Tim Berne's Fractured Fairy Tales (JMT, 1989)
I Can't Put My Finger on It (JMT, 1991)
Diminutive Mysteries (Mostly Hemphill) (JMT, 1993)

With David Bowie

Outside (Arista/BMG, 1995)

With Jakob Bro

Streams (ECM, 2016)

With Uri Caine

Urlicht / Primal Light (Winter & Winter, 1997)

With James Carter

Chasin' the Gypsy (Atlantic, 2000)
Heaven on Earth (Half Note, 2009)

With Anthony Coleman

Sephardic Tinge (Tzadik, 1995)

With Dave Douglas

In Our Lifetime (New World, 1994)
Stargazer (Arabesque, 1996)
Soul on Soul (RCA, 2000)
Freak In (RCA Bluebird, 2003)

With Mark Feldman

Secrets (Tzadik, 2009)

With Bill Frisell

Lookout for Hope (ECM, 1988)
Before We Were Born (Elektra/Musician, 1989)
Is That You? (Elektra Nonesuch, 1990)
Where in the World? (Elektra Nonesuch, 1991)
Have a Little Faith (Elektra Nonesuch, 1992)
This Land (Elektra Nonesuch, 1993)
Go West: Music for the Films of Buster Keaton (Elektra Nonesuch, 1995)
The High Sign/One Week (Elektra Nonesuch, 1995)
Live (Gramavision, 1995)

With Fred Frith

Allies (RecRec, 1996)

With Richard Galliano

Laurita (Dreyfus, 1999)

With Jim Hall

These Rooms (Denon, 1988)
Hemispheres (ArtistShare, 2008) with Bill Frisell
Conversations (ArtistShare, 2009)

With Fred Hersch

Sarabande (Sunnyside, 1987)

With Haino Keiji

An Unclear Trial: More Than This (Avant, 1998)

With Marc Johnson

The Sound of Summer Running (Verve, 1998)
Shades of Jade (ECM, 2005)
Swept Away (ECM, 2012)

With Lee Konitz

Sound of Surprise (RCA Victor, 1999)

With Steve Kuhn

Remembering Tomorrow (ECM, 1995)
Mostly Coltrane (ECM, 2008)
Wisteria (ECM, 2012) with Steve Swallow

With Joe Lovano

Flights of Fancy: Trio Fascination Edition Two (Blue Note 2000)
Sound Prints (Blue Note, 2013 [2015])

With Pat Martino

The Return (Muse, 1987)

With Carmen McRae

Live at Ronnie Scott's (Pye, 1977)
At the Great American Music Hall (Blue Note, 1977)

With Mark Murphy

Beauty and the Beast (Muse, 1986)

With Gary Peacock

Now This (ECM, 2015)
Tangents (ECM, 2017)

With Enrico Pieranunzi

New Lands (Timeless, 1984)
Deep Down (Soul Note, 1986)
Play Morricone (CAM Jazz, 2001)
Current Conditions (CAM Jazz, 2003)
Play Morricone 2 (CAM Jazz, 2003)
Ballads (CAM Jazz, 2006)
Live in Japan (CAM Jazz, 2007)
As Never Before (CAM Jazz, 2008)

With Hank Roberts

Black Pastels (JMT, 1988)

With Herb Robertson

Transparency (JMT, 1985)
X-Cerpts: Live at Willisau (JMT, 1987)
Shades of Bud Powell (JMT, 1988)

With John Scofield

Grace Under Pressure (Blue Note, 1992)

With Julian Siegel

Live at the Vortex (Basho Records, 2008)

With John Taylor

Rosslyn (ECM, 2003)

With Toots Thielemans

Only Trust Your Heart (Concord, 1988)
Do Not Leave Me (Stash, 1989)

With Roseanna Vitro

The Time of My Life: Roseanna Vitro Sings the Songs of Steve Allen (Sea Breeze, 1999; recorded 1986)

With John Zorn

The Big Gundown (Icon, 1985)
Spy vs Spy (Elektra/Musician, 1989)
Naked City (Elektra Nonesuch, 1989) with Naked City
Torture Garden (Shimmy Disc, 1990) with Naked City
Grand Guignol (Avant, 1992) with Naked City
Heretic (Avant, 1992) with Naked City
Leng Tch'e (Toy's Factory, 1992) with Naked City
Radio (Avant, 1993) with Naked City
Absinthe (Avant, 1993) with Naked City
Masada: Alef (DIW, 1994) with Masada
Masada: Beit (DIW, 1994) with Masada
Masada: Gimel (DIW, 1994) with Masada
Masada: Dalet (DIW, 1995) with Masada
Masada: Hei (DIW, 1995) with Masada
Masada: Vav (DIW, 1995) with Masada
Filmworks III: 1990–1995 (Toys Factory, 1996)
Masada: Zayin (DIW, 1996) with Masada
Masada: Het (DIW, 1997) with Masada
Masada: Tet (DIW, 1997) with Masada
Masada: Yod (DIW, 1997) with Masada
Filmworks IV: S&M + More (Tzadik, 1997)
New Traditions in East Asian Bar Bands (Tzadik, 1997)
The Circle Maker (Tzadik, 1997)
Black Box (Tzadik, 1997) with Naked City
Taboo & Exile (Tzadik, 1999)
Live in Jerusalem 1994 (Tzadik, 1999) with Masada
Live in Taipei 1995 (Tzadik, 1999) with Masada
Live in Middelheim 1999 (Tzadik, 1999) with Masada
Live in Sevilla 2000 (Tzadik, 2000)
The Gift (Tzadik, 2001)
Live at Tonic 2001 (Tzadik, 2001) with Masada
Naked City Live, Vol. 1: The Knitting Factory 1989 (Tzadik, 2002) with Naked City
First Live 1993 (Tzadik, 2002) with Masada
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 4 (Tzadik, 2004) with Electric Masada
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 7 (Tzadik, 2004) with Masada
Naked City: The Complete Studio Recordings (Tzadik, 2005) with Naked City
Electric Masada: At the Mountains of Madness (Tzadik, 2005) with Electric Masada
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 11 (Tzadik, 2005) with Bar Kokhba Sextet
Sanhedrin 1994–1997 (Tzadik, 2005) with Masada
Moonchild: Songs Without Words (Tzadik, 2005) with Moonchild Trio
Astronome (Tzadik, 2006) with Moonchild Trio
Six Litanies for Heliogabalus (Tzadik, 2007) with Moonchild Trio
The Crucible (Tzadik, 2008) with Moonchild Trio
Lucifer: Book of Angels Volume 10 (Tzadik, 2008) with Bar Kokhba Sextet
The Dreamers (Tzadik, 2008) with The Dreamers
Stolas: Book of Angels Volume 12 (Tzadik, 2009) with Masada Quintet
O'o (Tzadik, 2009) with The Dreamers
Ipsissimus (Tzadik, 2010) with Moonchild
Ipos: Book of Angels Volume 14 (Tzadik, 2010) with The Dreamers
Nova Express (Tzadik, 2011) with the Nova Quartet
At the Gates of Paradise (Tzadik, 2011)
A Dreamers Christmas (Tzadik, 2011) with The Dreamers
Templars: In Sacred Blood (Tzadik, 2012) with Moonchild
A Vision in Blakelight (Tzadik, 2012)
The Concealed (Tzadik, 2012)
Dreamachines (Tzadik, 2013) with the Nova Quartet
The Last Judgement (Tzadik, 2014) with Moonchild
On Leaves of Grass (Tzadik, 2014) with the Nova Quartet
Pellucidar: A Dreamers Fantabula (Tzadik, 2015) with The Dreamers
Andras: The Book Of Angels Volume 28 (Tzadik, 2016) with Nova Express Quintet

Filmography

Step Across the Border (RecRec, 1990) with Fred Frith
Masada Live at Tonic 1999 (Tzadik, 2004) with Masada
A Bookshelf on Top of the Sky: 12 Stories About John Zorn (Tzadik, 2004) with Masada
Bill Frisell: A Portrait (Emma Franz Films, 2017)

References

^ ^a ^b Kennedy, Gary (2002). Kernfeld, Barry (ed.). The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). New York: Grove's Dictionaries Inc. p. 145. ISBN 1-56159-284-6.
^ "David Bowie: A Different View". Modern Drummer. 11 January 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016.

External links

Drummerworld article

[New_Grove-1] Kennedy, Gary (2002). Kernfeld, Barry (ed.). The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). New York: Grove's Dictionaries Inc. p. 145. ISBN 1-56159-284-6.

[2] "David Bowie: A Different View". Modern Drummer. 11 January 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016.

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