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John Barbata, The Turtles & Jefferson Starship Drummer, Dies at 79
John Barbata, the drummer for The Turtles, Jefferson Airplane and more rock bands of the '60s and '70s, is dead at 79.
The Facebook account for Jefferson Airplane — which Barbata joined in 1972 — shared this post on Monday: “Known for his exceptional talent, John left his mark on the music. Prior to his time with the Jefferson outlets, Barbata served as percussionist for The Turtles, lending his skills to recordings of hits such as the Billboard Hot 100-topping “Happy Together” as well as “Elenore” and “She’d Rather Be With Me.” After the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame group disbanded in 1970, the New Jersey native was tapped by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young for live performances and session work on the members’ solo projects before he transferred over to the Airplane. “There are lots of great stories about all the the bands and people I have had the pleasure to be involved with during my incredible career,” reads a description of the book on Amazon.
Or read this on Billboard
