Barry Cowsill
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Barry Steven Cowsill (September 14, 1954 – September 2, 2005) was an American musician, songwriter and producer. He was the bassist of the musical group
The Cowsills The Cowsills are an American singing group from Newport, Rhode Island, six siblings noted for performing professionally and singing harmonies at an early age, later with their mother. The band was formed in early 1965 by brothers Bill Cowsill, B ...
, who had three top-10 singles in the late 1960s.


Early life

Barry Steven Cowsill was born in
Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...
to William "Bud" and Barbara Cowsill. He was the third youngest of seven children ( Bill, Richard, Bob, Paul, Barry,
John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
,
Susan Susan is a feminine given name, the usual English version of Susanna or Susannah. All are versions of the Hebrew name Shoshana, which is derived from the Hebrew ''shoshan'', meaning ''lotus flower'' in Egyptian, original derivation, and severa ...
).


Career


The Cowsills

As a young teenager, Barry started as the drummer (and later became known as the bass player) of the band,
The Cowsills The Cowsills are an American singing group from Newport, Rhode Island, six siblings noted for performing professionally and singing harmonies at an early age, later with their mother. The band was formed in early 1965 by brothers Bill Cowsill, B ...
. Initially formed by his brothers Bill and Bob Cowsill, the trio played popular tunes at local clubs, church benefits and parties. The band introduced their younger brother John on drums and switched Barry to bass. The quartet were signed by
Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...
. In 1966, they released three singles: "Most of All", "Party Girl", and "What's It Gonna Be Like". The band was dropped by Mercury, but they were discovered by
Artie Kornfeld Arthur Lawrence Kornfeld (born 1942) is an American musician, record producer, and music executive. He is best known as the music producer promoter for the Woodstock Festival held in 1969. Kornfeld is also known for his collaborations with Art ...
and signed to
MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...
. By the late 1960s, the band expanded to include his mother Barbara, older brother Paul, and younger sister Susan. The Cowsills went on to churn out a string of hits (including the #2's "The Rain the Park and Other Things" and "
Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...
") before officially disbanding by 1972. On the 1970 Cowsills' biblical-themed studio album, ''II x II,'' Barry sang lead vocals on the opening track, originally written by Bill Cowsill. He also sang lead on his first song written, an acoustic composition titled "Don't Look Back", inspired by Crosby, Stills and Nash. On the track "The Prophecy Of Daniel And John The Divine", Barry is heard speaking and reciting a passage. The song's verses was inspired and taken from The Bible's Book of Revelation. On the 1971 Cowsills' studio album, ''On My Side'', Barry sang lead and composed two acoustic tracks "Dover Mine" and "Down On The Farm", and also had featured lead vocals on "Good Ole Rock & Roll Song". In 2000, all members of the Cowsills participated in a reunion concert at The Taste of Rhode Island Festival, including Barry, Bill and Richard Cowsill, who previously were not involved in the 1998 Cowsill's album ''Global.''


Bridey Murphy

In 1974, the band Bridey Murphy was formed with
Waddy Wachtel Robert "Waddy" Wachtel (born May 24, 1947) is an American musician, composer and record producer, most notable for his guitar work. Wachtel has worked as session musician for other artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Beth Hart, Stevie Nicks, Miranda ...
, Bill, Barry and Paul Cowsill and (briefly)
Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician, record producer, and the lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with ...
. They released one single in 1974 "The Time Has Come" backed with "Be Your Mother's Son" on Capitol.


Solo

Throughout his life, he continued to play music and participated in various post-heyday incarnations of the Cowsills. He idolised Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of the British band
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
, and took on personas. In 1980, Cowsill released a limited edition cassette tape of demos titled ''A Portrait of Barry Cowsill.'' The recording session at Kingsound Studio, featured session musicians Dennis Brown (on electric guitar) and George Green (on drums). Barry played bass, acoustic guitar, and piano. In 1998, he released his first solo album, ''As Is''. This was followed by his second solo album, ''U.S. 1'', which was released posthumously in 2009. In 2010, Susan Cowsill did a rendition of Barry's song "River of Love" with other members of the Cowsills, featuring on her ''Lighthouse'' solo studio album.


Personal life

In 1987, Barry Cowsill married Deborah Scott with whom he had two children, Kiera and Collin. Cowsill and his wife were divorced in 2003. Cowsill had another older daughter Carrie, born out of wedlock in 1977.


Life and health

After the Cowsills broke up, Cowsill moved frequently and worked various jobs including construction and waiting tables. For a time, Cowsill owned a bar in
Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...
which he admitted he lost because he "drank it dry. I was drinking my face off in those days." In 2002, he relocated to his hometown of Newport, Rhode Island. In 2005, Cowsill relocated again to
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
. Shortly before his death, he had made plans to enter a
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
rehab facility to seek help for his alcoholism. His flight to Los Angeles had been scheduled for August 28, but those plans were stymied when
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...
caused the closing of Louis Armstrong International Airport and subsequently hit the city on August 29.


Disappearance and death

On August 29, 2005,
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...
hit the city of New Orleans. Cowsill, who chose not to evacuate, weathered the storm in an abandoned warehouse. Cowsill survived the storm but was in need of help. He called his sister Susan from a pay phone (Susan also lived in New Orleans with her family but chose to evacuate) and left four voice mail messages saying he was surrounded by looters and people shooting. Susan Cowsill did not receive the messages until September 2. Cowsill was never heard from again. After an extensive search, Cowsill's body was found under a
wharf A wharf ( or wharfs), quay ( , also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more Berth (mo ...
on the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...
on December 28, 2005. His body was subsequently identified by comparison to dental records. Cowsill's death was attributed to drowning as a result of the flooding following Hurricane Katrina. The Cowsill family held two memorials for Barry in Newport and New Orleans. Family members learned of his brother Bill's death (February 18, 2006) while holding a memorial service the next day, in Newport, Rhode Island, for Barry (his body had not been found and identified until January 2006). Barry's ashes were spread by a Copper Beech tree on the lawn of Halidon Hall, Newport.


Discography


Solo

* ''Portrait of Barry Cowsill'' (1980) * ''As Is'' (Lüd Von Records, 1998) * ''U.S. 1'' (2009)


The Cowsills

* ''The Cowsills'' (MGM, 1967) * ''We Can Fly'' (MGM, 1968) * ''Captain Sad and His Ship of Fools'' (MGM, 1968) * ''"Hair" / "What is Happy"'' (MGM, 1969) * ''The Cowsills in Concert'' (MGM, 1969) * ''II x II'' (MGM, 1970) * ''On My Side'' (London Records, 1971) * ''"Covered Wagon" / "Blue Road"'' (London Records, 1972)


Compilation

* ''The Cowsills Plus The Lincoln Park Zoo'' (Mercury Wing, 1968)


Bridey Murphy

* ''"The Time Has Come" / "Be Your Mother's Son"'' (Capitol, 1974)


See also

* List of people who disappeared


References


External links


Barry Cowsill
at Cowsill.com

- Newspaper articles * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cowsill, Barry 1954 births 2000s missing person cases 2005 deaths 20th-century American bass guitarists 20th-century American drummers 20th-century American singers 20th-century American male singers American child musicians American child singers American keyboardists American male bass guitarists American male drummers American pop rock musicians American pop rock singers Deaths by drowning in Louisiana Deaths in floods Deaths in tropical cyclones Guitarists from Louisiana Guitarists from Rhode Island Missing person cases in Louisiana Drummers from New Orleans Natural disaster deaths in Louisiana Singers from Louisiana Singers from Rhode Island The Cowsills members Formerly missing American people Drummers from Rhode Island Cowsill family