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About the show
John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett is the 1976 debut album by English folk singer-songwriter duo John Otway and Wild Willy Barrett. Released first on their own Extracked Records, the album is a collection of recordings made between 1971 and 1976.
Recording began with a series of sessions at Pete Townshend's Eel Pie Studios in which The Who guitarist contributed as an arranger, producer and performer.[Townshend produced the first two Track label singles by the duo, "Murder Man" and "Louisa On a Horse", which were included on the album.
A third single, "Really Free", reached No.27 in the UK charts in December 1977[ after the pair performed a set live on the BBC TV show The Old Grey Whistle Test. The performance was notable for an incident in which Otway vaulted on to a PA tower and overbalanced after Barrett's signal began cutting out. The Independent reported: "He brought down the speaker stack but fractured no bones when he landed on the sharp corner of a bass cabinet, as the impact was cushioned by his testicles."[
Polydor reissued the album after signing the band in 1977. The AllMusic website rated it seven out of 10, describing it as a patchwork collection that "dances on a peculiar precipice somewhere between folk and country, pop and pub rock"
Featuring
Otway and Barrett
Pigeonhole this duo at your peril, John Otway and Wild Willy Barrett are back on the road with their aptly named Final Straw Tour. Still going after 40 years and still loved for their total in-yer-face originality, the contrast between the dead pan humour of Barrett and mad onstage antics of Otway are hilarious to watch. John’s lyrical genius and Willy’s outstanding musicianship (he seems to play almost every stringed instrument known to man, plus a few hybrids of his own making!) almost become an added extra. Ever keen to add a new dimension to the show, Willy says he is going back to their roots with a new addition to his array of instruments, which he calls the Les Dawson Thumb. The idea stems from the guitar made by Willy’s dad in 1965 from an old guitar neck and a scaffold plank, which became affectionately known as the Les Dawson (a satirical reference to the much loved Gibson Les Paul) and was used on many of the early tracks, including Really Free. For any Otway/Barrett virgins out there who don’t know what to expect, be prepared for everything from bare-chested theremin playing to wah wah wheelie bin as the duo jump from one hit and 40 near misses to another: An amazing and irreverent performance by two master entertainers. Be sure not to miss this tour as Willy has hinted that it is “time gentlemen please” for his involvement in the turbulent duo’s existence in order to pursue a long-time interest in a more musical twilight and further experimental projects over his remaining years.
See Otway and Barrett tour dates