Chris Barron is best known as the lead singer of Spin Doctors, the 90’s rock band whose hits “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong”, and “Two Princes,” can still be heard in regular rotation on radio today. While the band is as strong as ever, still touring, playing festivals and headlining shows all over, Chris has another part of his art he is wanting the world to discover, his new solo album, Angels and One Armed Jugglers, out now on vinyl, CD, and digitally.
Americana might be the term best used to describe the new album, but Barron says when it comes to writing songs he “never thinks of genre”. Released to critical acclaim in 2017, Angels and One Armed Jugglers is filled with influences ranging from Rock to Ragtime. A documentation of songs written by a man who has traveled the world, gathering influences from everywhere, furthering his songwriting. Each song its own piece, never being pushed to sound any other way than what comes out naturally, using the influences that best service the song along the way.
Becoming a songwriter at a young age, penning the hit “Two Princes” at only 19, Chris has been able to live his life as an artist. While being the frontman of a successful Rock band might be enough for most, and for Chris something he does embrace and loves being, he would ultimately like to be remembered as a poet. An artist whose career is like a chest of drawers, with each drawer representing a different part of his art. You have the Spin Doctors Rock band drawer, but you also have the soulful solo drawer.
Ever evolving as an artist, Spin Doctors released If The River Was Whiskey in 2013, a collection of original songs rooted in the style of old blues standards, but presented through the lens of a modern Rock band. While being the newest release, the majority of the albums tracks come from songs written early in their career, allowing them to play Blues bars around New York.
Passing their own tunes off as covers was a way for the band to make a living performing early on, when bars would pay well for bands to play Blues classics that customers would enjoy. If able to play and fill one of these bars on a Saturday night, you would be able to play almost any blues club in the city, any night of the week. Something that helped the band find an audience and be able to survive early in their career.
Over the years, the Spin Doctors has had its highs and lows, from being all over radio and TV, to for a time, disbanding the group all together. It was during one of these moments of uncertainty that Chris wrote and recorded his first solo album, Shag. After having lost his voice, and fearing his career as a singer to be over, Chris worked hard to put all he had on this album, showing what he could do on his own.
The albums success led to its follow up Pancho The Kid in 2006, a rock fueled effort filled with full band numbers, more than just singer/songwriter acoustic numbers.
Along the way, Spin Doctors got back together and found them selves once again as active as ever in the music world, but Chris has never forgotten his love for being a solo artist, entertaining crowds all over, stripped down to the basics.
On March 10th he will be performing a solo show at The Saint in Asbury Park. Barron will be performing songs from the new album, as well as some Spin Doctors classics, and deep cuts from his past solo catalogue. In speaking with Chris about his upcoming shows, he is excited to bring his unique live show to an audience that might not know what to expect when they walk in.
Having previously performed stand-up comedy, his shows are full humorous stories that are as much a part of him as the songs he bares his soul on throughout the set. Being able to entertain an audience with just him and his guitar is one of his favorite parts of being an audience. The connection when the crowd sings along with old favorites, or laughs at the stories he weaves effortlessly between songs, is what it’s all about.
For a one of a kind experience from a man living what he loves, find both Spin Doctors and Chris Barron solo touring all over this year.
-Aaron White
