Biography
Patricia Barber was born on November 8, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, to Floyd 'Shim' Barber, a jazz saxophonist who performed with Bud Freeman and Glenn Miller, and a blues vocalist mother. Growing up immersed in music, she played saxophone and piano from a young age, sang in high school musicals, and initially resisted a jazz career, viewing it as unwise for a woman. She studied classical piano and psychology at the University of Iowa in the early 1970s before returning to Chicago, where she began performing in bars and clubs, landing a pivotal five-night-a-week gig at the Gold Star Sardine Bar in 1984, which launched her reputation.
Barber's career gained momentum in the Chicago jazz scene, moving to the Green Mill in the mid-1990s, signing with Premonition Records, and releasing breakthrough albums like Cafe Blue (1994), which sold over 120,000 copies, followed by Modern Cool (1998) and Nightclub. Her style blends sultry vocals, inventive piano, sophisticated original songwriting, and adaptations of pop and standards, often blurring jazz with poetry and art music. She joined Blue Note/Premonition, earned a rare Guggenheim Fellowship in 2003 for a song cycle inspired by Ovid's Metamorphoses (culminating in Mythologies, 2006), and released innovative works like The Cole Porter Mix (2008).
Known for her uncompromising approach, Barber has toured globally while prioritizing intimate venues like the Green Mill, turning down lucrative offers to focus on art and life. She briefly taught jazz singing at UC Berkeley in 2007 as a Townsend Resident Fellow, cementing her legacy as a visionary composer and performer active since 1989.
Fun Facts
- Patricia Barber won a Guggenheim Fellowship in music composition in 2003, an unusual honor for a jazz/pop songwriter, funding her Ovid-inspired song cycle Mythologies.
- She initially rejected a jazz career, studying classical piano and psychology at the University of Iowa, but was drawn back by the joy she observed in jazz musicians.
- Her 1994 album Cafe Blue sold 120,000 copies on the small Premonition label, surprising the jazz world and launching her internationally.
- Barber famously prioritizes her 'slow lane' lifestyle, turning down touring offers and lucrative deals to focus on art, education, and intimate performances.
Musical Connections
Mentors/Influences
- Floyd 'Shim' Barber - Father and jazz saxophonist who inspired her early musical exposure (Played with Glenn Miller and Bud Freeman) [1950s-1960s (her childhood)]
Key Collaborators
- Jim Winterfoerder - Long-term sound engineer and collaborator (A Distortion of Love (1991)) [1991-present (30+ years)]
Connection Network
External Links
Tags: #american, #contemporary-jazz, #jazz
References
Heard on WWOZ
Patricia Barber has been played 2 times on WWOZ 90.7 FM, New Orleans' jazz and heritage station.